Chapter's Series
by Ann Pendragon
Summary: JERICHO A continuation after the season finale.
1. Chapter 1

DISCLAIMER: Don't own Jericho or any of its characters. Pity…

AUTHORS NOTE: One of my many takes on how Jericho's Heather/Jake storyline can continue. I'm considering this as therapy for the effects of the Season Finale. Beware, this is un-Beta read. Just wanted to get it out there. And I also admit to knowing little about military or government structure, so bear with me. Hope to get another couple of chapters out this week.

**Chapter One: The Return.**

**by Ann Pendragon**

"Who's in charge of these men?"

All of Jericho that stood in the battlefield that was the Richmond farm turned to the houses top step.

Jake stepped down to meet their 'Calvary'. He could feel his men close rank around him as he came to a stop before the uniformed men.

"Me. Jake Green. I'm in charge."

Col. Hoffman sized up the ragged and bloody man before him somehow expecting these men's leader to be someone else. How old could this man be? Was he crazy for what he had almost led his men into? He watched the other townsfolk move protectively around their leader and felt the young mans fierce stare now focused on him. If he had not seen the devil himself already these past many months, the Colonel would have said he saw him in this young mans eyes. There was no question that this man was in charge and that these men would follow Mr. Jake Green into hell again and right now if need be.

"Are you an elected official?" Kid didn't look like a Politian.

Jake may have laughed on another day. "I've sent Mayor Anderson back to our town hall under armed escort. I'm in charge of these men." The officer nodded.

"I am Col. Hoffman of the United States Armed Forces stationed out of Fort Liberty, Nebraska. We got word from one of your citizens that a dispute was about to take place between the town of Jericho and the neighboring town of New Bern in this vicinity and we have come to end such hostilities….

"United States?" Jake broke in. Around them questions began to break out amongst the town folk. The Colonel raised his hands to attempt order.

"Yes, a new Federal Government has now been set up in Cheyenne, Wyoming. As of right now our goal is to reestablish law and order among the cities and towns of our United States and proceed with rebuilding our country. We can give you more information as soon as we have dispatched your neighbors back to there town and I have spoken to your Mayor. I am asking you all to now go back to your town and await our arrival. Then we will discuss your new government and answer your questions."

The officer listened to the information sink into the town folk and brought his attention back to their leader. Did these men know how hopeless their fight had been?

"You know we counted nearly a hundred trucks loaded with men bumper to bumper coming in here. That doesn't include the train load of men 'a tank' stopped just over the hills from here. Where the hell did you people get a tank?"

Jake ignored the last question but answered the first.

"We knew. There was no other choice for us, but to fight." Jake looked to Eric and Stanley and then the rest of his men. "This is our home. We will defend it no matter who's to come to our doorstep."

The Colonel once again fell under the man's heavy stare. 'Kid wasn't crazy just had balls the size of boulders' the officer decided.

"When you are short on everything, but the enemy…"

"You are in combat." Jake finished for the Colonel. Both men gave the other a nod and then shook hands.

Jake wasn't sure who gave the first war hoop, but the sentiment quickly spread amongst the men. Jake let go of the soldiers grip and felt Stanley's hands jubilantly smack down on his back and shoulders.

'_One of our citizen's….'_

"Excuse me Colonel Hoffman. You said one of our citizens warned you?"

The officer gave a genuine smile.

"Yeah, a little thing, determined as hell to be heard. Wouldn't take no as an answer till we got moving. Some of my men are already an hour out from your town by truck. She snuck on with them before I became aware."

Jakes heart was now lodged in his throat. 'God. Please, I ask you to just give me this today.'

"Her name?" The officer sensed the young mans tone change exponentially when requesting this information, his stone eyes now almost glassy and wide.

"Linski. Heather."

ooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Nearly an hour had passed before the majority of Jericho's citizens had made it back into town. Those who could went to check on their properties. Jake had yet to hear from Hawkins. The Colonel said that the tank was empty when they found it and the train. Jake had no doubt Robert Hawkins could take care of himself, but he was still concerned for his comrade. Stanley, Jimmy and Bill stayed at the farm to help Jake and Eric bring their fathers body to town. Johnston Green had been like a father to all of them at one time or the other.

Jake drove the truck back with his father's body. Emily and Eric sat in the seat beside him. When his mother had refused to get in the cab, wishing to sit with her husband on their last ride back home together, Jake only nodded and reached for his mother's hand.

"Promise I'll drive slow ma." Gail couldn't have loved her son more.

Jake hadn't told anyone about Heather yet. The crowd had been celebrating so loud at the time, no one else heard Jake and the Colonels exchange and it just didn't feel right to bring about this happy news just yet. His father was dead and his family was in pain. So no one questioned his silence on the drive back or how Jake nearly broke his promise to his mother and tapped the gas peddle the closer they got to town. They were all stunned and wanted this day to be behind them.

Coming into the center of town and up to the medical center, townspeople began to flow from the square and stand around the truck. Jake felt his throat tighten and his eyes tear when realization hit. They had come to say goodbye to their leader. Jake and Eric jumped from the truck and helped their mother down from the bed. Soon men from the crowd came to their sides and reverently helped carry the body of Jericho's fallen hero into a private room. With no words exchanged, the town along with Emily left the Greens to deal with their sorrow in privacy.

After some time had elapsed, Gail was the first to speak.

"He loved you boys so much."

"We know ma, he told us. He told us-he told us he loved you too."

Gail looked to her husband's body and began to stroke his beard gently.

"I knew that you old man. I love you too. Did the first time I made you smile that first day we met." She kissed his cooling cheek as she bit back her tears. Jake flinched with her pain.

"I'll have to tell our boys some day how we first met" she choked out. "A story for another day?" Gail began to cry.

Jake and Eric stood from their spots and kneeled at their mother's side, holding her between them trying to share whatever strength the two of them had left. The tears slowed and Gail pulled from her boys.

"I-I don't want to leave him boys, not yet. I just want to sit and talk with him a little while longer--- alone."

She reached out and placed her hand on her youngest cheek and squeezed her oldest hand.

"My boys." She smiled warmly at her reasons for living.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

As soon as the brothers made it into the hall Jake reached out again to his brother and enveloped him in a hug.

"We can do this little brother, its how dad raised us." His brothers heart beat brought him needed strength.

"I know." Eric pulled from his brother but did not leave his space. "It just doesn't seem real."

"I know, I know." Jake looked away while unconsciously trying to rub bloody hands off on bloody jeans. A silence settled between them.

"Eric, the citizen that alerted the military was…"

"Heather." Eric finished. "I heard Col. Hoffman answer your question over the yelling. I figured you had your reasons for waiting to tell us the news."

Eric gave a sad but genuine smile. "Go find her Jake. She's gonna be looking for ya."

Jake gave his brother a questioning look before nodding and storming out the door past a frantic Mary.

"Oh Eric…"

Jake still could not express, even to himself, exactly what Heathers return meant to him. He simply wanted it to be true. He wanted to see her smile at him again. He wanted to see her back in one piece.

Before Jake could make it out to the parking lot, he felt Stanley at his side.

"Jake, Gray needs you at town hall as soon as possible. Some of the military trucks are starting to show up."

"The trucks…" Jake started out at a sprint that even Stanley's long legs had a hard time keeping up with.

"Jake…"

"It's Heather, Stanley. They said she's the one who brought them to us. She's on one of those trucks."

"But you told me New Bern said…"

"When did New Bern tell us the truth?"

"Good point." Stanley slowed to a stop and watched his normally stoic friend run into the growing throng of trucks, soldiers and townspeople; taken by the amazing news and his friends reaction to it. He was gonna go find Gray.

Jake looked out to the crowd in the square and then he saw it, the flash of chestnut hair in the sun that made his heart beat quicken in spite of its self. She was alive and home.

Heather was speaking with Mimi and Bonnie. He watched her eyes close painfully with the information Mimi had just relayed to her. His breath caught in his throat, understanding what she had just been told.

"Heather!"

Her head snapped around quickly to the sound of his voice, the one she had been longing to hear and dreading to at the same time. How was she going to face him after all that had been done? She wasn't able to warn Jericho about New Bern's plans and now she just learned she was too late to help the people she cared about the most. Jakes father was dead. Johnston Green was gone.

"Jake." Her eyes grew round with the sight of him. If she had not heard his voice she would not have believed the worn and hollowed man before her was Jake Green. Blood soaked much of his cloths; she could not bring herself to think of whose. His hair now fell over sharp and strained features. He looked diminished but it was more than weight he had lost.

Heather took one small step from Mimi's watchful eyes and looked heavily into Jakes wide eyed gaze, almost the same expression he wore when she left for New Bern what seemed a lifetime ago. The look of worry, care, warmth and now relief that emanated from his fathomless eyes momentarily outweighed her guilt and sparked her need to once again feel his arms around her.

She ran to him crashing into his embrace and became surrounded by him. Jake felt her begin to shake in his arms and once again felt his own tears resurface. He hadn't expected his own reaction to her presence in his arms, but it was her words that hit him the hardest.

"I'm sorry Jake. I was too late. I'm sorry-I'm sorry."

He let out an audible cry then pushed it back down; holding her tighter, shaking with her.

"This is not your fault, Heather. Don't you dare pick up this guilt!"

Jake pulled from her and held onto her shoulders in a bruising grip. She would not look into his eyes as he jockeyed for her line of sight.

"Heather, you did not do this. Damn it Heather look at me!" Heather startled at his voice and did as she was told.

"You saved us, this town. Col. Hoffman told me how they found you and how you fought like hell to get them back here to stop New Bern." He pushed a strand of hair from her damp face.

"Constantino told us you were dead" Jake paused. "But you made it back. You kept your promise and turned on all the lights for Jericho and now you've saved it." He gave her a smile he hadn't felt in months.

Heather sniffed loudly and drug her sleeve roughly across her face, disrupting his hold on her shoulder.

'_They told them I was dead?'_

"I got back" Heather continued to look away from him. "just a little late." She let out a sarcastic chuckle and another stream of tears.

Jake knew she had yet to forgive herself and pulled her to him once more, now adding her pain with his own. For all the loss of this day, he felt warm for the first time since she left. He felt hope.

"Ms. Linski, good to see you back with us."

Jake and Heather broke from their embrace to notice the small group of spectators around them. Gray stood beside Stanly, his arms across his chest. Mimi and Bonnie had walked closer along with Emily. Jake looked to the ground when Emily's questioning eyes met his.

"I was told of your earlier demise in the service of Jericho and just now your part in bring in the Calvary." Gray shook his head at the little school teacher. "The windmills and now this."

Jake noted her relief hearing the acceptance and lack of accusation in Gray's words and in the proud stares of those around her. He watched Emily walk up to Heather and gave her a small but genuine smile.

"I'm glad you're O.K. Heather. I don't think I could have handled your third graders if the school starts up again."

Heather let out a light laugh and hugged her friend back before the other woman stepped away and stood at the other side of Jake. It did not go past Heathers notice how Emily took Jakes hand possessively.

'_I was gone...'_ Heather reminded herself. _'And he was never mine.'_ She felt ashamed for even assuming. Heather wasn't given much time to dwell on the thought as Stanly had broken from the group and had her in a twirling bear hug.

"Damn, kiddo. Are ya tryin to take Jakes title of town hero or something? Huh?"

Winded, she looked up at the tall yellow lab of a man and gave him a smile only Stanley was able to elicit from anyone who met him. Her smiled broadened a little more when she watched him pull Mimi and Bonnie to his side, but then could not help but think of Jake and Emily's joined hands and not feel a pang of loneliness.

Heather hadn't expected this to be the difficult part of returning home.

**TBC.**


	2. Chapter 2

DISCLAIMER: Don't own Jericho or any of its characters. Pity…

AUTHORS NOTE: This **IS** therapy for the effects of the Season/Series finale. Beware, this is un-Beta read. Just wanted to get it out there. And I also admit to knowing little about military or government structure, so bear with me. Hope to continue with this story at least till I've come to a resolution with the Heather/Jake relationship. I think it would have had promise.

**Chapter Two: Jericho's Future**

**by Ann Pendragon**

Col. Hoffman and his men met with the elected and assumed leaders of Jericho later that evening. A similar meeting was taking place back in New Bern regarding the forced truce between the two Kansas towns. Both town's strengths and resources were going to be needed for the survival of the new United States and the governing body was not going to be pleased or tolerant of any present or future disputes.

"There will be tolerance between your two towns." The officer's voice carried across the town meeting hall reaching, but not necessarily convincing its occupants. "In one week there will be a meeting between representatives from both Jericho and New Bern, the federal government and myself at a neutral location to further discuss your concerns and to meet a mandatory truce."

Heather was unsure if the Colonels words from the government relieved or worried her. She looked across the room and immediately met Jakes eyes. He also seemed to share her concern for Jericho's future.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

The next day Jericho's dead were lain to rest.

The night before, after the town meeting Gail Green, still numb from her husbands passing, came to Col. Hoffman and made a widows request for her military husband. The Colonel gave twelve of his men and their riffles for Johnston's send off and Jack Tomko's teenage son Jim played Taps.

The mellow cry of the horn squeezed the hearts and souls of everyone present at the cemetery and when the first riffle shots sounded across the valley, nearly all of the town twitched or jumped in their place. After silence found them again Gray Anderson stood before his town. He started with…

"Johnston Green was a mountain of a man, a true friend and a leader to all…" It was the first speech that Gray ever gave that came from his heart.

Gray's surprisingly brief words ended with a nod and an extended hand in the direction of Jake. His mother tearfully squeezed his hand and his brother nodded as he stood from his seat and came before his town, his people, his family.

"My father saw the character of a man and saw those things that could redeem him. He was a fair man, but he did not except excuses. If he saw something in you then it was there and he let you know he was waiting for you to see it too." Jake looked to his mother, drawn by her knowing smile.

"Johnston Green loved this town and its people as much as he loved his family because you were all his family." Jakes tears now covered his cheeks, his eyes held the town. "The hope he had for all of us needs to continue by living in all of us if Jericho is to continue on. We are family, not by blood or even geography but by our hearts and our hope. And with us, my father and everyone else who has fallen since the bombs, before or may still; they will live on in all of us."

Jake briskly wiped at his face and looked out over the familiar faces before him, new and old, his heart pounding in his chest. His eyes once again caught his mothers then Eric's. He watched Stanley hold his new family a little tighter and saw others do the same with their neighbors. They were all with him; they were going to make it. Lastly, Jakes eyes fell to Heather. She sat resolute beside Bonnie, her eyes shinning up to him, offering him her quiet strength through her unchecked tears. He knew in that moment he was going to make it too.

"Jericho." He pledged softly to his town.

"Jericho." He said a little louder.

"Jericho." Stanley and Eric fell into the chant.

"JERICHO." The entire town began to reverently chant until it became a pledge that those who were sitting now stood for. All eyes to Jake, all voices now strong.

"Jericho." Jake whispered to himself as his emotion flowed with pride. This is what his father had seen when he had looked to his town all those years. Jake swore he felt a chill upon his spine and a hand upon each of his shoulders. The torch had been passed.

**TBC.**


	3. Chapter 3

DISCLAIMER: Don't own Jericho or any of its characters. Pity…

AUTHORS NOTE: This **IS** therapy for the effects of the Season/Series finale. Beware, this is un-Beta read. Just wanted to get it out there. I will continue with this story, at least till I've come to a resolution with the Heather/Jake relationship. Hope you guys like it and I hope to hear from ya.

**Chapter Three: Ends and Beginnings.**

**by Ann Pendragon**

Jake stood in the doorway of his family's kitchen, watching the ebb and flow of those who came for his father's impromptu wake. It wasn't much in the way of a traditional wake, food was still scarce, but the libations and memories were plentiful. Thanks to Johnston, Mary's still was once again at full tilt.

Jake was working on his third glass of the firewater when he noticed his newly animated mother and a slightly uncomfortable looking Heather having an intense conversation. He was just about to go find out what was troubling the women when he felt it, he was being watched. Jake casually turned his head to get a better view out the kitchen window, the hairs on the back of his neck bristling as he scanned what he could of the yard. Out of the corner of his eye something flickered just out of sight behind the cracked door of the garage. The dim flash was barely noticeable in the evenings failing light, but the next moment it flashed the glow picked up the outline of a familiar face.

"Mom" Jake stepped in the direction of his mother and nodded warmly to Heather. He spoke low and casual so not to draw attention. "I'm gonna go grab a few more folding chairs for the front porch."

"Sure Honey." Gail reached out her hand to touch her son for the hundredth time tonight. "Do you want me to get Eric and Stanley to help?"

"No Ma, I'm just grabbing a few."

He smiled at his mother and kissed the hand he now held before walking away. Jake took in the last swallow of his drink then quietly found his way out the back door and across the lawn to the garage.

"Didn't take too long. Still be dead if I had been a sniper, but not bad."

Jake arched his brow and walked further into the shadows to shake Robert Hawkins hand.

"Good to see you in one piece."

"You too. I gather it was a close call when those military choppers flew over, otherwise you wouldn't be standing here."

"Yeah, Heather brought the Calvary." Jake gave a brief grin that Hawkins didn't miss then leveled his eyes at his comrade. "The same Calvary that's now looking for you and your family."

"It's the bomb, Jake. It's the smoking gun to who put this whole thing in motion." Jake placed his hand to his mouth and leaned against the tool bench, allowing Hawkins to continue. "I moved it shortly after you saw it. It's safe and away from here. Early this morning Darcy and the kids made it safely to one of my safe houses. That's where I'm heading after I leave here."

"What are you going to do now?"

"Best you don't know any more Jake."

"Then what do you need me to do?" Hawkins looked to the younger man and understood that if he had asked, Jake would have helped. He still couldn't figure how a guy like Jake, could still be noble in this new world of corruption and desperation, but it gave him hope for the future.

"Be this town's hero. Protect your family, protect this town and take care of yourself. You're a good man Jake Green and this town is a better place with you in it. Leave the secret agent stuff up to us old pro's." Hawkins placed a firm hand on Jakes shoulder, their eyes met in understanding.

"I am sorry about your father, he was a good leader."

"Thanks." Jake spoke quietly. "Thank you for all you've done for this town."

"Wish I could have called it home."

"It is your home."

Hawkins smiled at the young mans words.

"Good luck Jake." Jake nodded his head.

"You too."

Jake collected a few chair from against the wall and walked out of the garage without turning back. Out in the evening air he stood for the briefest moment to gather his thoughts. He could not help the slightest shift and lightening of those things he carried around on his shoulders. One less battle he needed to fight, at least for now.

Before he could get the last chair around to the front porch, Emily was at his side.

"Your Mom said I should check on you and those chairs." Jake quietly returned her smile and let her take a chair. They made it to the porch, nodding and giving greeting to the guests sitting around.

"Jake…" Emily reached out a comforting hand to his shoulder and nodded to the driveway for a quiet place to talk.

"Hell of a day, huh." Emily felt uncomfortable under his tight grin when he didn't answer.

"I just wanted you to know that when you want to talk about- well, everything I'll be here." Jake took her hand and squeezed then let it go. He had no idea what to say to Emily right now about what happened after his father died or his reaction with her, let alone what to tell her later.

"Are you leaving?"

"Yeah, told your mom I'd take her shift at the clinic this evening then it was switched to tonight, so…"

"Thank you Emily." He meant it. Jake pulled her into a hug, the only thing he could think to do that was right for the moment.

"Hey, Jake!"

Jake broke from the embrace and turned to Stanley as he walked across the grass.

"I'll see ya later Jake." He nodded his head again to Emily and then she was gone.

"Hey buddy, sorry if I …" 

"No, you didn't." Jake spoke briskly. Both men were silent for a moment. Jake could tell his friend had a lot to say. Stanley could tell Jake had a lot on his mind.

"How ya holding up?" Stanley walked close into Jakes personal space, something most men hesitated in doing, even on a good day. Stanley never thought twice on it.

Jake shrugged his shoulders and tried on a weak smile for his friend.

"Best as I can." He leaned back against one of the cars, Stanley joined him.

"Today I was thinking of my Mom and Dads funeral, how everybody came together. Many of the same faces here tonight."

"I'm sorry Stanley…"

"Don't be sorry Jake, just listen a minute." Jake remained silent and let Stanley say his peace.

"I guess what I'm trying to say and not very well is that your father came to me and Bonnie that day and told us we were not alone. He basically told us the things you said at the funeral today, that we were apart of his family. I just wanted you to know the same goes for you Jake. You're not alone. Whether you realize it or not, you have this whole town at your back."

Stanley fell silent, but Jake could tell by his friend's worried brow he had more to say.

"What else are you not saying Stanley?"

"Your not gonna make this easy, are ya Jake." Stanley took a deep breath.

"I wanted to thank you and ask you a question."

"Stanley, what are you talking about?"

"I asked Mimi to marry me and she said yes."

"And you're thanking me for that?"

"Jake, I'm thanking you for the opportunity I had to be able to do it."

Jake was completely puzzled.

"I know what you tried to do, what you did do for me just before the choppers flew over and stopped the war with New Bern." Jake held his breath and turned his head to the ground. "My gun ran out and you pushed me into the ground and under the car. Hell Jake, you sat on me trying to cover my big old hide when the New Bern guys started to charge." Stanley scratched his head a moment. "Didn't figure you'd be strong enough to hold me down."

Jake felt again the prickling chill up his spine. This acknowledgement from his friend was more sentiment than he could take right then.

"You don't have to…" Jakes weak rebuke was easily pushed away by Stanley's raised hands.

"I took Mimi up to my folk's graves last night to tell them we weren't joining them any time soon and then I asked her. Mimi didn't want me to tell people till later, after things had settled a bit, but I figured good news shouldn't be kept quiet and you wouldn't mind me asking you this today." Stanley briefly paused. "So, would you be my best man?"

Jake roughly cleared his throat and looked to his best friend, his eyes round and warm.

"I'd be honored to stand with you Stanley." Jake extended his hand soberly to his friend but was winded when the larger man wrapped him in a hug and took him off the ground.

"STANLEY."

Stanley quickly released his friend to the ground when his name was hissed in pain.

"Damn Jake, I'm sorry. I didn't know you were hurt." He watched Jake quickly regain his composure.

"Just my side, I'll be fine. And don't tell Mom." Jake said automatically.

Stanley just stood from his stoic and stubborn friend and shook his head at Jakes latest attempt to hide a hurt from those who cared about him.

"You remember that time when we were teasing my dad's donkey Mike and he nicked your side when he kicked out? Remember when my mom tried to get you to tell her how bad you were hurt and all you would tell her was…"

"It only hurts when I breathe." How could Jake forget his first cracked rib?

Jake noticed Stanley looking up to the front porch. Mimi and Bonnie were saying their goodnights to Gail along with Gray. Heather had just wondered out to the group and was hugging Bonnie when Stanley turned back to his friend who had now found his own interest in the scene.

"You breathe a lot easier when you have someone to share your hurts with Jake." At that moment Mimi turned and smiled at Stanley then nodded to Jake and grinned. Jake smiled warmly back to her and Bonnie and then signed, "_Congratulations"._

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

By the end of the night only Eric, Mary and Heather were left. Jake and his mother were now the only residents of the Green home.

Gail walked up behind Mary at the dinning table and placed her hand on the glasses she was about to pick up.

"It's O.K. You kids need to head home and get some rest." Mary startled for a moment at Gail's proximity then smiled lightly when the older woman placed a hand gently on her arm.

"Thank you." Gail said. Her smile was genuine. Jake and Eric exchanged hopeful grins.

Jake saw Eric and Mary to their car then found his way back across the yard, watching the sky for stars as he walked to the back of the house.

"So, best man huh?"

He momentarily startled then gave a lopsided smirk to the girl on the porch rail.

"Yep. Saw it coming, just didn't duck in time." Heather let out a light giggle. He had missed hearing it.

"Your dad would have appreciated good news on a day like this I think."

"That he would." Jake agreed. Her words were comforting to him. They reminded him of what Stanley had said to him earlier tonight.

Both now looked up to the dimly emerging stars, the silence not uncomfortable. Jake wondered if he was going to regret his next words, but the question had been eating at him since Heathers return.

"Why didn't you come back with Russell and the first windmills?"

"Why did you wait five years before returning to Jericho?"

Their eyes rushed to meet the others briefly before both looked away, neither expected these questions tonight. The silence couldn't last so Jake spoke first.

"You didn't know Constantino was going to use the windmills against us when you went to New Bern. No one blames you for any of this. You didn't disappoint anyone." He watched her stare more intensely at her hands in her lap.

"But you did?" Her question was unexpected and not for the first time tonight, he felt confused.

"Did what?" He did sense the conversation turning back to him and dreaded it.

"Disappoint." She said, pulling up the nerve to look him in the eyes.

He didn't break eye contact. He looked to her now as if it was the first time seeing her. Did he tell her how he spent most of his life defining the word disappointment to most everyone who cared about him? Funny he thought, neither of them had answered the others question. The questions seemed like answers enough. But Jake felt like he wanted to give her a answer. He wanted to give someone the truth.

"I was a screw-up punk of a kid who didn't give a damn about his actions till it was too late for others around him. I kept proving I was a screw-up after I left Jericho. I put myself in situations I thought I deserved, situations over my head. And then when I finally did come back home it wasn't till I absolutely had to. I wasn't staying, just one day and I was going to leave again for good, but…"

"But the bombs."

"Yeah, the bombs." Jake searched her face for judgment but found none. "I guess life had other plans for me."

"You saved Stacey that night." _'The first time we met.' _Heather smiled.

"The first thing I ever did right."

Heather continued to study Jake after he finally turned away. She felt there was much more to Jakes story but seemed to understand the admittance he did give was more than he had expected to. She would not push. Heather decided it was only fare to answer his question.

"I was ashamed that my hometown could try and use Jericho like it did. I was ashamed for giving them the opportunity to set their plan in motion. I didn't want to face you all knowing what I did at the time and that's why I didn't come back that day. I was a coward Jake."

Heather stepped away from the rail and settled to the porch steps, Jake soon followed till his knees were touching hers.

"You are many things Heather Linski, but coward is not one of them."

"Yeah, well you make a pretty pathetic screw-up Jake Green."

Both tried not to smile but failed miserably. Once again, they sat in a peaceful silence, feeling comfort in the others acceptance.

"I'm going with you and the rest to negotiate with New Bern…"

"Heather…" She knew he was going to object.

"Hear me out Jake. I knew New Bern before and now after the bombs better than any of you. I go and I can help keep things honest with New Bern cause their not gonna be otherwise." She could see her valid point swaying him. He knew it was a good idea; it's why he didn't continue to argue.

"Besides, I'm kinda hoping to see the look on Constantino's face when his 'dead girl' shows up."

Jake gave a uncomfortable laugh at this. The debt he owed Constantino still weighed heavy on his mind. Things were far from over between him and New Bern's Mayor and he didn't want anyone he cared about in the middle when the debt was settled.

"Your gonna take your case to Gray about going even if I say no?"

"Yes." Grudgingly, he understood it was something she needed to do."

"This time you come home with us, O.K.?"

"Then it's agreed." Jake and Heather quickly turned to Gail Green, now stepping out the back door. "You're staying with us."

"Mom?"

"Mrs. Green."

"Gail Dear, please call me Gail. I can't let you go back to a half bombed out apartment tonight when we have plenty of space in this house to share."

"You went home to a destroyed apartment last night?" Heather felt Jake getting angry as did Gail. Heather chose not to answer Jake and focused on his mother.

"I can't impose…"

"What imposition? You're a friend of this family and it is the least we can do for all that you have done for this town."

Jake watched Heather look down at her hands and saw her tear from his mother's words. He fought the urge to hold her.

"I'm not fam…"

"You are now Honey. You are now."

Heather looked to Jake and watched him silently nod his approval but could not tell how he felt about the turn of events. Once again his dark eyes were protective of his thoughts. Heather turned back to his newly widowed mother and knew she could not refuse her, for many reasons.

"O.K." _'Lord what have I got myself into?'_

TBC.


	4. Chapter 4

DISCLAIMER: Don't own Jericho or any of its characters. Pity…

AUTHORS NOTE: This **IS** therapy for the effects of the series finale. Beware, this is un-Beta read. Just wanted to get it out there. I will continue with this story, at least till I've come to a resolution with the Heather/Jake relationship. Hope you guys like it and I hope to hear from ya.

Chapter Four: Debts Owed.

by Ann Pendragon

To Jakes unease, Heather got her reaction from Constantino. The mayor of New Bern had kept his eyes trained to Ms. Linski when he wasn't being debated by Gray or declaring New Berns innocence with regards to the two town's home grown war. To Jake's pride, Heather did not waver under the corrupt leader's scrutiny and made her voice the loudest when calling the Mayor on his untruths and the misinformation's he doggedly continued to dispense to the government officials and military.

After a particularly bitter concession to relinquish and dismantle New Berns artillery manufacturing line in favor of expanding the production of windmills and parts, Constantino turned his attentions back in the direction of Heather. Only this time he was met by Jakes icy glare.

The heated look in Constantino's eyes extinguished only a small measure and his lips curved into a dangerous smile while under Jakes attention before flicking his gaze back to Heather and then to Jake once more to provoke.

Jake felt the vengeful Mayors ill intentions, he could have shot the man right there. It was only Heather's hand on his arm under the table and the voice of his father telling him to _'fight smart Jake to fight another day' _that helped him steady his resolve. Constantino's day was coming soon enough; he schooled himself, now he just needed to get Gray to see it that way without telling the Politian to much.

"This man has brain washed and mismanaged the welfare of his people for his own personal gains. He blames us for things we had no power over…"

Knowing what he knew, Jake didn't see this being a subject of any accomplishment that day. The government and its military just wanted the two towns to settle and play nice so rebuilding the country would go smoother.

Jake stood and walked a chair over to Jericho's Mayor and latched his long fingers discreetly around Gray's arm, wordlessly directing him away from the table and less of an audience.

"Gray, taking Constantino out of power will not happen tonight. The government is becoming aware of Constantino's instability and in time they along with most of his town will …"

"Jake, while that man is in power Jericho is at risk." Jake couldn't disagree with that.

"Constantino is a bridge we WILL burn when we get to it." Jakes eyes flickered in the direction of the New Bern men and found Russell's, but did not hold his stare, leaving the interaction unnoticed.

"Constantino is muzzled for now. We need to be more concerned with what our new government is going to want from us later down the road."

Long forgetting personal space, Jake backed up a few inches from Gray's and let his eyes communicate the seriousness of his concerns and beliefs. Gray Anderson trusted Johnston Green's oldest son, Jericho still survived with a lot of thanks to the younger mans persistence and resourcefulness, but he also feared him on some days. The older man nodded his head to Jake and breathed in. Both men returned to the table and the new argument that had started just after they left.

The exchange between Jake and his mayor had not gone unnoticed by Col. Hoffman. The officer had been standing among his men while the government mediators dealt with the squabbling towns. The colonel knew his place and his job. He was the Calvary; he enforced law and cleaned up the messes when the citizens of the new United States did not follow them. He had been certain it was a similar job Jake Green held in his town of Jericho, but now he wasn't so sure. The lanky and intense 'commander' of Jericho's troops last week appeared to be just as competent when reining in boisterous Politian's and dealing with town politics.

Jake felt the military man watching him and turned to nod before placing his interest back on the Mayor of New Bern. Some things were not going to get settled under this tent tonight, the Colonel just hoped that whatever these good old boys had planed for later didn't cost him any men or ammo.

By the close of the two town's first meeting, an uneasy truce was grudgingly met by both sides conceding that there would be no more acts of war at present time. Frankly, Jericho could not take another fight with its neighbors and New Bern feared the military strike promised if they tried to pursue another raid.

Only time would tell how smoothly both towns would begin to work as part of the same nation and not separate and hostile entities. There were still too many fresh and gaping wounds between the two towns to ignore and unfinished business still festered.

"This is only the beginning of our new world", one of the governments mediators spoke proudly as both sides were asked to stand and meet the other side to shake hands before their government. "We will cover more as we know more ourselves. As promised, some relief will be brought into both of your towns if not already in the form of medical supplies and food rations. Won't be much at first folks but were all trying to get things back on track. We will be meeting with both of your towns in the coming months to go over the needs of your fare citizens and what will be needed of your towns to further the stability of this newly reformed government."

Jake felt Heather squeeze his hand as his eyes met Stanley's.

We are all rebuilding bridges right now. Your government appreciated and hopes for a mutually beneficial partnership between your two towns and the new United States of America.

'_Rebuilding bridges?'_ Jake could not hide his distaste when watching the two majors grudgingly shook hands for the 'dog and pony show' before him but knew it was a necessary evil. _'Burn that bridge when we get to it'_, Jake played in his mind as he left Heather and his brother and steeled up to the other side of New Berns Mayor without notice.

Constantino was about to leave the tent and join his men when he turned into the path of two decidedly dark and resolute eyes. The heated glare that resided on the Mayors face dimmed a great deal more than earlier, Jake Green was no longer across a table but inches from his nose. Jake sensed it and drew closer to his late father's murderer, not wavering in intensity or purpose.

"Just like your father, up in my face with threats no doubt. Or are you going to try and kill me right here in front of all these men? Huh, Jake?" Anger and some panic flashed over the Mayors features and Jake drank it in.

Before stepping away, Jakes eyes narrowed and a mirthless grin broke over his teeth. His next words were spoken low, deadly and only for Constantino's ears to hear.

"My family doesn't make threats, only promises." Jake paused for effect. "Be patient Mayor, it will come."

With his last word spoken no grin or emotion was left on Jake Greens face. Constantino however had paled three shades lighter, leaving most around them wondering what the younger man had said to the other town's mayor.

"And Miss Linski…"

Before Constantino could draw a breath after hissing Heathers name, Jakes fist had connected with his face and laid the man out onto the dirt floor. Men from both towns rushed to their man and Col. Hoffman made it between the fray with his side arm before another fist or worse could be thrown.

'_Not settled by a long shot' _

"Get your men to your vehicles now! You will be escorted immediately back to your towns. We will be in future contact."

Constantino was already off the ground and being led to New Berns trucks. Jake was being led away by a startled Heather and Eric and a particularly proud Stanley. Jimmy had already gone to the truck Jake had driven to the location and Gray was yelling something at Jake, but Jake had tuned him out. None of them had heard the exact exchange between Jake and Constantino, but knew it wasn't good.

_'Damn.'_ Jake continued to repeat in his head. He let Constantino see his fear, his weakness. His eyes grew darker as the hand in his gripped him tighter.

_'Damn.'_

TBC.


	5. Chapter 5

DISCLAIMER: Don't own Jericho or any of its characters. Pity…

AUTHORS NOTE: This chapter ended up a little longer and I just went with it. Also tried my hand at flash backs and more words of wisdom from the deceased. Once again, this **IS** my therapy for the effects of the series finale. Beware, this is un-Beta read. (Maybe I should get one?) I will continue with this story, at least till I've come to a resolution with the Heather/Jake relationship. And that is starting to look like at least 17 chapters total. Hope you guys like it and I hope to hear from ya.

…………………………………………………………

**Chapter Five: Now I Just Get Paid For It.**

by Ann Pendragon

"Jake."

"Hmmmf."

"JAKE."

"Grrft."

Jimmy stood over the half conscience man contemplating how much he really wanted to be the one to wake him.

"Stanley, do we really need to get Jake up?" Stanley found it kinda funny, the hesitancy in Jimmy's voice. Guy must have woken up Jake before. Stanley pushed the deputy aside to get the job done.

"Course we gotta wake him, I promised his mom I'd get him to sleep in his own bed this morning and not on this old couch."

"JAKE!" His friend didn't move.

"He just got in from patrol an hour ago Stanley, been out since I went home last night."

"Yeah, I know. He was helping out in the hospital basement with Heather's Grease Monkey Squad before that, trying to get some rewiring done."

"Why does he do it Stanley? Everything? It's not like he has to prove himself. The whole town respects him. He don't need to pull any more hours than the rest of us already are or do more."

"It's Jake, Jimmy. Best we leave it at that right now."

Stanley frowned down at his rumpled friends body stretched out the length of the couch, face buried in the arm cushion and his legendary bed head already defying gravity. His friend looked like shit.

"Damn it, Jake. UP! NOW!" With that, Stanley flattened out his broad hand and brought it down upon his friend's backside as if smacking a stubborn cow, eliciting a predatory growl and half drawn side arm from a now pissed and awake Jake.

Jimmy didn't know whether to pee himself or howl with laughter, the moment could have warranted both.

"Come on Sheriff Jakey, your mommy wants you to go home and stay there for once."

"Not Sheriff…"

"O.K., not the Sheriff. I'm sure that fills Jimmy here with all the confidence in the world."

"It's O.K. Stanley." Jimmy grinned with his reply. They both knew Jake Green was every bit his new job even if said man acted disquieted by the title.

The two watched Jake sit up and crack his back before leveling two blackened and blood shot eyes in their direction.

"Your lucky I need both of you on the schedule" Jake growled in a rusty voice before pulling his hands over his head and face and rubbing with vigor. His hair saluted.

"You said Mom?"

"Yeah, now come on. I even got ya breakfast." Jake caught the government regulation protein bar as it hit him in the chest and reached for his hat and duffle bag.

"Jimmy. Joe Metzer stopped me yesterday and said he'd come for training. He'll be by tomor- I mean today to talk to you."

"Got it Jake. Maybe he can help fill in some of the vacant shifts. _'The men we lost last month.'_ Be nice to see one more man on the schedule?"

"Yeah, one more gun. Thanks Jimmy". The younger man smiled appreciatively to Deputy Taylor. With each passing day he understood why the town loved the man and why he respected him. Jimmy was honest and genuine. He jumped in to help without the asking and took pride in his job, his family and in his town. This year hadn't changed those noble qualities only fortified them. Jake had asked Jim why he didn't take the Sheriffs position before and why not now. His only reply to Jake was, "This town needs you to do this job Jake. You're the leader."

"Come on Jake. Home." Stanley prodded his friend forward. "I still gotta drop off the rest of the sprouts and then meet with your brother and Gray at Town Hall. We're planning where to set up more crop space in town. Should be just groovy." Jake watched Stanley out of the corner of his eye and saw him grinning. Stanley complained about his increased appearances before Gray, but he felt a bit of pride being pulled to help plan Jericho's agricultural future.

"I could…"

"No, you can't because your gonna be sleeping and last I heard your not a farmer." Jake grinned as they got to Stanley's truck, tossed his duffle bag in the back and jumped in. Jake's vehicle was presently being "modified" for duty down at the township garage.

Jake raised his hands in quiet defeat when Stanley pointed at him and then pulled his sheriff department ball cap over his eyes against the early morning sun. Aside from the hat on mornings when hair brushing was a option, the metal star attached to his belt and a now holstered gun, nothing else except the authority in his stride distinguished him as the Sheriff.

Gray had protested when Jake gave his stipulations for taking the job. No uniform was one of them and full autonomy with regards to security issues was another.

"And I work for this town Gray, not you. I don't need to get paid to do what I have to keep this town safe."

No one argued the point. The job had already been filled by Jericho's once prodigal son, the badge was just the finishing touch. Gray was also not so stupid to see that a Green in the role of law and order set well with the population of Jericho.

Stanley pulled from the parking lot behind Town Hall and made it on to Main Street. Going slow through town they were met by nods and smiles from those towns folk up early for the day. Jake let his arm drift out the open window and breathed in the morning for the first time. He pulled the cap tighter over his eyes and felt his mind drift while Stanley drove him home in temporary silence

………………………………………………

"_Let's see the badge big brother." Jake had felt uncomfortable pulling the star from his pocket and placing it in Eric's outstretched hand._

"_What do you think Dad would have said about all this?" Eric had sensed his big brothers insecurities and shook his head in disbelief. 'If only he saw himself like the rest of us do now'._

"_He would have said about damn time." Both men gave brief but wide grins before soberly shaking hands and then opened the doors to the town meeting hall, where they were met by applause._

…………………………………………

"Hey best man, what ya think we should do for a bachelor party?" Jake stirred out of his thoughts.

"Bailey's?"

"Ahh, Bailey's has been done. How about the lake?" Jake turned to his friend and grinned into the sunlight.

"Yeah, that will do. We'll bottle up Mary's hooch and some of those relief rice crackers from last week, get a fire going and start telling lies."

"Quick party planning Jake."

"Hey, only the best for my friend the condemned man." Stanley looked over to his best friend and could only see teeth from under his hat. Been a while since he saw Jake smile like that; it made him feel good for the day. But with all good things…

"Stanley, stop the truck."

"Jake?"

"Stanley." Jake was now his Sherriff.

Before either man could think twice, they were out of the truck and in-between two men having it out in front of Gracie's Market. Jakes man was now being held in a full nelson and Stanley had his pinned face into the wall.

The one in Jakes capture continued to struggle against his bonds so Jake increased the pressure on the back of his neck, eliciting a cry from the man and then felt him still.

"What the hell is going on here?"

"It's that punk Dale and his goons again. He sent this guy to steal nearly all of my eggs and five of my chickens…"

"Goods owed to the store..." Stanley pushed the other man further into the wall as he howled at the farmer. Jake turned his attentions back to the farmer.

"Dan, are you gonna stop? I'll let ya go."

"Yeah, yeah." Jake gently let go of the man as he jumped from his grip and twisted his neck about. Stanley released the other man who started to walk closer to the farmer again. Jake raised his finger to him in warning, stilling the weasely little man. Stanley stepped in for good measure.

"Did you owe the Market the goods Dan?"

"Jake..."

"Did your last deal with the market include those goods?"

"Yes, but I don't have as much as I would have. I need to make a living and damned Dale don't give damn."

"When is your next renewal Dan?"

"Next month."

"Then I suggest you either don't and find elsewhere to sell your goods or negotiate less." Jake gave the man a pleading look now. "We have to follow the law Dan, all of us. Soon as we get some sort of stable court set up we can settle these things better than this." Jake spread his hands out between the two men.

"This is done." Jake looked firmly to both men. "Go home Dan. Better yet come to the town meeting tonight and bring it to the table. It will be heard." Jakes voice held no malice and Dan Rupp sensed it.

"I'll do that." He picked his hat up off the ground and nodded to Jake before glaring at the Markets hired help and then was gone.

"Serves him right the thie…"

The store worker, Joey Bicks, didn't finish his sentence before he had to step back from the Sheriffs approaching form and knocked himself into the store door.

"Dan Rupp is a hard working man dealing with these times as best he can. Don't make it right but it doesn't make him a thief. Now where is Dale?"

'_Boy, Joey better not lie to Jake today.'_ Stanley thought as he watched his friend's eyes turn that particular black you only see in horror flicks. No sleep did that for a guy.

"He-he's at Skylar's probably still in bed." Jake squinted his eyes at the man. "Swear." Don't usually come in till later these days. Growing boy and all."

Jake gave the man a nod, his lie detector satisfied.

"Talk to your boss later." Jericho's sheriff and his deputy walked away leaving the man fumbling with the lock on the Market door.

"Stanley, you get back to town hall tell my brother the lawyer and Gray we have another topic for tonight's meeting. Court needs to be in session and soon."

"Roger Wilco Over and Out." Stanley snapped a salute and Jake so desperately wanted to be pissed but lost his steam.

"Get me home smart ass, I'll deal with Dale later."

Stanley started up the truck and looked to his friend again.

"The Duke would have been proud Jake, just gotta say."

Jake just glared at his friend before allowing a brief smile followed by a deep breath and settled into the truck seat pulling his hats bill. Adrenaline in the morning wasn't coffee but it would do. Home was three streets away; he began to feel himself settle.

"Hey Jake. Ya gonna stop by Bailey's tonight before shift?"

"Maybe."

Stanley sized up his friend knowing he was about to poke a bear, but felt the conversation was due.

"Emily asked about you last night. Turned every shade of green when I told her you were helping Heather and the guys in the clinic basement."

Jake had wanted to make things right with Emily for weeks now, but something just always came up. It was bad enough when Emily had to overhear him telling someone else Heather was staying at the house. It was even worse the other day when Jake had to cancel dinner with her a third time to deal with town business. To Jakes regret, he was helping to bring back the old Emily, the Emily he remembered when they were dating in high school and after. And frankly Jake was just too tired to deal with that now, but he was gonna have to…

"Jake?" They had made it to the Green house. Jake had already jumped from the truck to retrieve his bag and now stood on the front sidewalk.

"They needed my help Stanley…"

"Heather needed help, don't lie." Stanley watched Jake pinch his nose and turned from his friend.

"I'm too tired for this Dr. Phil routine Stanley. I'm going to bed."

Stanley watched his friend walk up the front walk and laid on his horn.

"You already made your mind up Jake" he yelled before driving off. "Time to tell the other two parties before you have to break up your own domestic dispute."

Jake unlocked the front door and nearly went head first over a tool bag at the corner of the hall rug sitting beside a crate of sprouts. Heather was still home and probably still asleep and Stanley must have been here to pick up his mom for work. Stanley and his mom were early birds, Heather and him were not.

Most mornings-hell most days this is how the Green residence was being run, a motel that sometimes served supper. Jake understood why his mother worked the way she did. You don't have to think of a empty bed at night if you're not in it or too tired to think once you reach it. Gail Green bitterly missed her husband. And as for Heather and himself, both were town fix-it's in their own way and neither knew how to say no, but for their own reasons.

'_Don't want to think about it now…'_

Jake let his own bag hit the floor and locked the door before taking his cursory tour of the house.

'_All secure.'_

Up the steps Jake was about to turn into his room when he heard it and then he felt it. The light breathing behind the cracked door down the hall pulled his tired feet in its direction and to its threshold.

He knew he shouldn't do this, but he did nearly every morning since the meeting with New Bern a month ago. Even when he didn't stay, Jake would still stop by the house to check on Heather and his mom if either were in. When they were out pitching-in around town he would always find ways to see them, even if briefly. Heather was the hardest to find sometimes so Jake made her take a radio with her under the guise that if he needed her "grease monkeys" he would know where to find them. And when he found himself not filling a shift as Sheriff he became a grease monkey himself.

While they were awake, Heather and Jake were housemates and friends, comrades in arms with regards to keeping the town running. They worked well together. They had proven that earlier on during those first unsure and frightening days after the bombs.

But while Heather slept or when she didn't know he was watching her, she was so much more to him. She was his quiet strength and now to Jake's dismay his hearts ache. He could not, now feeling the way he did about her, push her away. However, he did nothing to let her any closer. He had unwittingly come to depend on her simply just being there at his side and feared this selfish need put her in danger. Even now he could not let go of the vengeful look in Constantino's eyes when he watched Heather across the bargaining table. He knew that look because he had and still wore it himself.

So Jake made excuses to be near her without giving away the real reasons why. He used his new position to watch over her, another name on the top of his list. And he would find himself in her doorway on mornings like this, watching her sleep safe and sound in his house, and knew it had become the only thing that settled the fear in his stomach and dulled his daily concerns if for only a little while. Jake settled his back against the doorway breathed in and closed his eyes.

He heard her shift under the covers and opened his eyes to look on her. He never stepped into her room or stayed if she wasn't "decent". To his relief it had yet to be a issue or at least it wouldn't be while Kansas nights were still cool. Heather hadn't been lying about her love of flannel. She now owned three of his shirts which his mom had given her.

He felt a wistful grin turn his lips as she curled around the pillow against her chest. The strands of her hair fanned out over the blue of the bed sheets and for a moment she reminded him of a mermaid he saw on a wall mural in San Diego. The blue of Heathers eyes would have completed the blissful scene.

…………………………………………

"_Jake, is true?" Heather's eyes had been particularly blue that day. Jake's mom had just told her he was considering the title of Jericho's Sheriff. _

"_Yeah, Mom thinks it might give me some structure to my normally listless days." Heather rolled her eyes at his sarcasm._

"_Actually, she seems kinda proud of the prospect. Thinks you might as well get paid for what you already do."_

"_So how much do you two women talk about me." Jake had counted on embarrassing her a little but not the strawberry glow that covered her then diverted face._

"_Enough to know you didn't like cloths till you were four and you have an unwavering love of all things John Denver." Jake's brows had arched in some discomfort._

"_Wow that much." Heather smile was wide with her victory. _

"_So are you going to take the job?"_

_Jake had looked away as they continued their walk to the township garage. At the time, he still wasn't certain._

"_I don't know if it's such a good fit for me. I mean, I was the town hoodlum for Christ sake…"_

"_Then who better to know the tricks of the trade." Jake smiled at her reasoning and appreciated her logic._

"_What do you think?" He watched her shake her head and look away again. "Come on humor me." _

_Heather had stopped at this point to look him in the eyes. It seemed this was something she had already been thinking on._

"_People go to you for help because they trust you and they know you care about them and this town. You've proven that to them time and again. That makes people feel safe and that's something with the way things are now." Heather looked to her hands and twisted them against her. "Your the hero Jake."_

_For that moment he could almost believe that. _

_Heather had started walking again and it took him a moment to catch up. Later that day he took the job._

……………………………………………

Jake grudgingly stepped away from her doorway and allowed his need for sleep to take control. In his room he stripped away his tools of the trade and pulled his shirts over his head taking the hat with it. His mind still swam with images of the woman down the hall.

Jake caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror and reached to the dog tags around his neck, first his granddads and then his fathers. He drew a deep sigh.

"_Why don't you tell the girl how she makes you ache?"_ He heard the familiar voice that had been in his head most his life. Jake braced himself on the dresser and could almost see his grandfather's eyes staring back at him from the reflection.

"Can't deal with it now Granddad." Jake mumbled to himself as he closed his hand around the tags.

"_And that worked out for you so well in the past"_

"I don't want to hurt her." Jake physically shook with the quiet admittance.

"_Then tell her."_

"She's too good for me." Jake closed his eyes and let his insecurities bloom.

"_Stupid Jake, the right one's usually are."_

Dr. Phil never had a thing on E.J. Green.

**TBC.**


	6. Chapter 6

DISCLAIMER: Don't own Jericho or any of its characters. Pity…

AUTHORS NOTE: This chapter is dedicated to the character of Heather Linski and Sprague Grayden's love of sci-fi—hence the title. And thanks to all of you who answered the "Jake's Car?" entry**. Question???-**When the rest of you put out fanfic do you wish you could take it back off the board and add to or fix it more, a lot? Maybe it's OCD?

Once again, this **IS** my therapy for the effects of the series finale. Beware, this is un-Beta read. I will continue with this story, at least till I've come to a resolution with the Heather/Jake relationship. Hope you guys like it and I hope to hear from ya.

WARNING: Some language.

Chapter Six: The Grease Monkey Strikes Back

by Ann Pendragon

"Fred, have you seen my needle nose pliers?"

Fred Kenston stood from under the hood of the beat up Chevy he'd been fighting and stretched his old bones till one gave a crack then began to pat down his many pockets for a cigarette. Heather had already popped out of the back storage closet in her search and was now standing with her head tilted in question at the elder gentleman.

"I thought you told May you ran out of those?"

"I did and I didn't, so don't ya go blabbing. And no I hadn't seen your pliers little miss so go check under Charlottes' seat." Fred continued his search for nicotine till he suddenly grinned with success.

"Hot damn, I might just get this engine fixed, found my inspiration." Heather smiled disapprovingly at her friend as he strutted out by the entrance of the garage for a few drags on his "inspiration".

'_God, my inspiration would be a shower right about now.'_

Heather wiped her hands across her coveralls before wiping her face. Thing is her face had originally been cleaner than the coveralls till now. Been a while since she had looked in a mirror.

Today her Grease Monkey's finished two cars in need of repairs, a bio fuel changeover and now Heather was tinkering with a solar panel Jake "wasn't at liberty" to say where he found. At this point her interest in the object far outweighed her interest in finding out where it came from so she didn't ask…for now.

The rest of her crew had loaded up into a couple of township trucks about an hour ago for a scavenger hunt at the salt mines. Gray had given permission to go through the mines dump and the abandoned north section for scrap and machines; hell anything they could reuse, restore or repurpose. Tomorrow, that was where Heather would be spending her day. Nothing like several acres of rusted metal and derelict machines to make a girl think it's Christmas.

Heather bent down into her old pickup and started to pull out spindles of wire and her precious rolls of scavenged duct tape. The guys called them "Heathers Hillbilly band aids." Sometimes the guys laughed at her methods, but no one laughed at her results.

"Fred?"

Rear in the air and reaching for the passengers side, Heather was startled by a hand holding her missing tool just past her left cheek and a warm presence behind her other two.

"Freddy says sorry. Found them in his pockets."

"Jake!"

Before she could stop herself, Heather jumped backwards and into Jake, putting him off balance and into Charlottes' driver side door. Heather grabbed his shirt to stop from falling and then felt his arms wrap around her. It took only a second for both to realize the familiarity of the moment and neither could hide the recognition in their wide eyes.

'_She's beautiful.'_

'_God, I remember his lips.'_

Jake could feel two of her heart beats before she pulled from his chest hastily and turned back to the truck to close the door. He took the opportunity to reclaim control on his faculties and catch his breath. _'Good job Jake, way to keep things at a distance.'_

"Sorry, I didn't mean…" Jake again held out the pliers for her taking as she brushed past him and felt a loss when she would not look at him.

"I didn't expect you up so soon." And she hadn't. She hadn't expected him to be behind her or expect him to smell so good, but she expected how his proximity would make her feel_. 'Hold it together girl.' _

Jake watched her fidget nervously with her ponytail as she crossed the township garage to the door that separated the two main sections. He knew he had to find their "normal" again.

"So you got that old Blazer fixed up? Gave it a light bar and…"

"Yes, that and a working siren." her voice slid into polite teacher mode and Jake saw that as better than nothing. "It's all set up along with a better running engine, a wench and we were able to reinforce the old bumpers, but I thought you might be interested in something else…"

Heather walked past the behemoth Jake had been driving this last month and heard his steps cease as they made it to the other side.

Jake stood wide eyed at the sight before him.

'_Guys were allowed to weep over their cars, right?'_

"How?"

"Russell and a little bit of me. A couple weeks ago I heard you talking to Stan and Bill about your old Roadrunner you had to leave behind in New Bern and where…"

"Yeah, Dad came to the rescue. No time to go back for it." Jake stepped up to the Plymouth and touched the hood gently.

"Well two weeks ago, when the military brought Russell and the rest of our windmills, me and him had a chance to talk before you and Gray came out…

………….

"_It's Jakes car. I mean it's not a priority. Actually I know it's not a priority…"_

_Russell had raised his hand to the brainy little brunette to stop her nervous rambling and gave a knowing smile._

"_Sounds like it's important to him. I'll see what I can do. It's the least I can do."_

…………….

"…so when Russell sent those guys for the salt the following week, the car came with them." Jake still hadn't turned from the car.

"We really didn't have to do much to it, just a little preventive maintenance and fluids. It had already been bio fuel ready from before. I thought it was best to ask first before I-we made any major modifications. Well except for this..." Heather pushed past him, her nervousness forgotten, pulled a magnetic flashing light from the car and plopped it on the roof.

Jake pulled his hand from the car smoothly. Heather hadn't done a thing to change the physical appearance of his car, aside from the light, but it somehow looked different to him. He didn't see Jonah behind the wheel or Emily or Chris. He didn't see his escape from Jericho at three in the morning to parts unknown, now six years ago. He just saw Heathers gift to him.

"Shhhhht. Jake. We got a problem at Baileys. Over." Jake was immediately pulled from the spell of the moment and grabbed his radio.

"Bill. What's wrong?"

"Domestic dispute at Bailey's. Need an extra hand with Old Mike and his wife again." Jake dropped his head to his chest in defeat. Old Mike Jenkins and his wife JoAnne made a habit of drinking away reality and then blaming the other for the end of the world. Mike had been a fishing buddy of Johnston Green before the bombs.

"You mean he don't want to talk to you." Jake couldn't help the small grin he had from the confirming silence on Bill's end.

"Jake… Mike threatened to break the jukebox." Jake raised his brows and turned to Heather who was laughing despite herself.

"Be there in five…" Jake looked to his car and gave Heather a warming smile that she returned. "…or less."

She could tell Jake's thank you was on the tip of his tongue, but he had to go so she tossed him his keys.

"Just go. I don't need 'jukebox' added to the town repair list." Jake's smile grew wide and genuine; he hoped she saw the gratitude in it.

She did.

Out of the garage and onto the pavement, he was gone. Heather watched him leave as she backed up from the entrance, not watching what she was backing into. Before a newly emerged Fred could warn her, Heather had headed strait into a shelf holding a small basin of used oil and grime taken from Fred's truck. All she could do was stand there as it hit her shoulder and spilled its contents down her right side, poring over part of her head and down over her coveralls not to mention in.

She didn't know whether to scream or cry. The option was taken from her with the loud rollicking laughter of her fellow Monkey. Fred was smacking his knees and howling with laughter in-between bouts of smokers cough.

"You could laugh better at me if ya didn't smoke." She grumbled as a poor retort.

"Miss Heather, you go get yourself cleaned up at the clinic. I promise I won't tell that dark knight of yours what you did on account of him and you say nothing to my May in return."

Heather reached into her hair and tried to push the gunk off her brow.

"Done."

Heather wasn't thrilled to march down Main Street as the living advertisement for the Grease Monkey Squad, but she didn't let it faze her. She was getting that shower.

She was pleased to see Gail outside the building with some of her volunteers tending to linen sterilizing duties, when she got to the clinic. Now she didn't have to go wandering around the building dirty, looking for permission to use the clinics showers. Funny enough the garage of 'fix its' had yet to fix their own facilities.

"Heather dear are you alright?" Gail came up to the young woman with much concern and a healthy dose of humor once seeing Heather was unharmed, an absolute mess but unharmed.

"Occupational Hazard" Heather gave a weak grin. Gail could only arch her brows and grin back at the endearing tomboy her son quietly cared for and who she had easily come to love. Heathers response could easily have been one her son would give. '_Yes, the two were a matched set, just didn't know it yet.'_

"Go ahead to the showers, Honey. You still have a bottle of Go Jo in the storage closet and Mr. Bernard's salt scrub mixture if you need it. Towels are near the front stall."

Heather bowed her head and pulled up a little on her tool bag under Gail's mothering stare. It was a look she had yet to grow accustom to. No one had looked at her that way, like a mom, in many years. But she did not refuse the attention.

Down in the clinics subbasement Heather found all the assorted concoctions, homemade and otherwise to get herself looking a little less tar monster and more clean human. Boots off, she began to pull down her coveralls to reveal a grime soaked tank top.

'_Boy I did it this time.' _

Heather heard a coughing sound and was surprised to turn and find Emily there.

"Gail thought you might need these." Emily held out a stack of scrubs to Heather but noticed her grimy hands and thought better of it. "I'll just place them on the cabinet."

"Thanks." Heather said quietly while continuing with her shower preparations.

She knew Emily was watching her and for a moment she felt like the girl in the hand-me-down cloths being judged by the popular girl in high school.

"What happened?" Emily actually seemed curious.

"Attack of the grease and grime. Zigged when I should have zagged so I got splattered." Heathers nerves always brought out her humor, but Emily did not seem amused. Heather kept up her scrubbing.

Emily's original intent was to do Mrs. Green a favor and then leave Heather as soon as she could, but the younger woman's last comment caught her in a memory. It was what Mr. Green had mumbled to Jake just before Emily left the farmhouse with the other townsfolk. _'Zigged when I should have zagged…'_

Her eye's darkened while watching Heather scrub at her dingy hands. Emily had just a while earlier seen Jake drive past the clinic towards Bailey's in Jonah's old car. Emily had heard second hand what Heather had done and knew Jake must have just picked up the car from Heather.

'_Another reason for Jake to spend time with Heather.'_ Annoyance and some hurt pricked at Emily's pride. _'I'm the one who's been with him through all this mess. She left.'_

"Jake's gone through a lot since you left." Heather felt her chest flutter and constrict from the accusing tone in Emily's voice. Something in her gut began to chill.

"I know…"

"No, you don't know. You went on your mission to chase windmills back in New Bern. You weren't around to witness the things Jake had to go through to help us survive the winter or how he was when April died and his family was breaking apart or how he was when he came back from New Bern after being told you were dead and couldn't believe you were gone." Emily took a breath after spitting out the long held emotion and then continued.

"You weren't here when he broke down in MY arms when his father was murdered by YOUR old neighbors. So no you don't know." Heather continued to scrub at a particularly dirty spot on her hands and tried to push back the pressure behind her eyes. Emily's words hit her hard, flaring the guilt she still held onto.

"I told you before Heather; you don't know Jake or what he needs, not like I do. I was here for him. You weren't."

Heather abruptly stopped scrubbing and stiffly turned off the water.

These past months Heather had been through a few things of her own. New Bern wasn't her old home town anymore, it was a hell hole ran by a tyrannical mayor who used fear to steer a desperate and beaten population.

She may have watched her world in Jericho harshly change after the bombs, but in New Bern her world as she knew it had been completely destroyed. She saw people who grew up with her, people she respected; lie, steal and murder their neighbors to get what they needed or think they needed to survive. So many people now made desperate by these times, some people still not willing to grasp the changes in this new world.

Now turning to Emily, Heather stood covered in grime, sweat and a new understanding of her "friend". Emily was one of those desperate people.

"We have all gone through a lot Emily, but most of us choose not to keep a score sheet of our hardships and good deeds done."

Heather hadn't expected her words to come out so calm or so direct. It appeared neither did Emily. Heather took advantage of the woman's startled silence and continued.

"And who are you to keep a tab on other peoples past. If I could change what happened with New Bern and Jericho I would but I can't. I can't change where I was born as much as you can't change who your father is or Jake can change what he did in the past. It's the past Emily, the past."

Emily stepped closer into Heathers space. She could feel the heat from the blonds glare but did not waver from her spot. By now Heather had faced down a great deal worse. Emily Sullivan being pissed for hearing the truth was to be the least of her worries.

'_Hell'_ Heather thought. _'If I'm gonna get into my first cat fight…'_

"And as for Jake…" Heather attempted to meet Emily eye-to-eye and wished she still had on her work boots. "I have watched how you treat him when life gets too hard for you to deal. I have watched him race off and nearly get himself killed trying to change a past he can't, and you still insist on holding him in that past, like its all he can ever be. That's not 'being there' for Jake, Emily. That's being there for yourself."

Emily's eyes narrowed to slits while Heathers widened…

(Several minutes later.)

Jessica knew she was pulling way too many doubles at the clinic so she'd admit to not noticing the long scratch on Emily Sullivan's neck that her locks only half covered or even the greasy and rumpled state of said locks. However, what she did notice was the red rimmed furry in said woman's eyes and the slight limp in her step as she stormed closer to the nurse's station by the front hall.

"I'm going home" the woman huffed in a flurry of curls. Jessica didn't answer nor did she need to, Emily had already pushed through a small crowd of locals at the door and was gone.

"What the hell happened to her?" Jessica had adored Roger, but Emily was more and more working her last nerve.

Thirty minutes later Jessica got her answer in the form of a petite freshly washed woman in green hospital scrubs carrying a tool bag and a neatly folded pile of greasy cloths wrapped in wire. Heather smiled and nodded to Jessica as she walked past, telling the other woman to tell Gail she'd see her tonight at the meeting and was going back to work.

It was all Jessica could do to not break out in laughter when Heather continued her exit, followed by a long bit of golden curl stuck to the bottom of her greasy boot.

TBC.


	7. Chapter 7

**DISCLAIMER:** Don't own Jericho or any of its characters. Pity…

**AUTHORS NOTE:** Tell me if I was long winded on this one. I keep wanting to add more stuff as I write. Also, I brought back more words of wisdom from the dearly departed. (I love that) Once again, this **IS** my therapy for the effects of the series finale. Beware, this is un-Beta read. I will continue with this story, at least till I've come to a resolution with the Heather/Jake relationship. Hope you guys like it and I hope to hear from ya.

**QUESTION: **What song lyric's best fit some of the main characters? (I got Jake) So how about Gail, Johnston, Eric, Mary, Mimi, Stanley, Bonnie and her "Vibe" guy, etc. I need to pick just a couple for a future chapter. Think women at a bachelorette party at Bailey's.

**WARNING:** Some language.

**Chapter Seven: Ghosts**

by Ann Pendragon

"Yeah, that went well." Jake could taste his own sarcasm, it was that thick.

Jericho's Sheriff stepped from the front doors of town hall, aside from Gray and his brother, probably the last to leave. In Jake's opinion, Eric and Gray still had 'homework' to finish before the next town meeting.

All had gone well at first. After seeing that his mother and Heather had a seat, he practiced some of what his brother called "civil servant etiquette" with those arriving for the meeting. Jake just called it "saying hi." Jake Green wasn't about to start kissing babies.

Soon, most in the room settled into their seats or found a place to stand and Jake made his way to a corner of the room to watch the crowd. Most town meetings started with Jake standing at some unobtrusive vantage point just far enough into the crowd to be apart of it, but by the end of the meeting Jake always found himself at the front of the hall.

The pledge of allegiance was still given, might be a changed flag but the pledge itself still held its weight in the hearts of Jericho's citizen's. Then following there was a small prayer given by a representative of one of the three churches in Jericho, each church was to take a turn every three weeks.

Gray started off with crop reports from each of the towns larger farms and then went on to cover planting assignments of future crop sites in town. That actually went relatively well; many of Jericho were already ahead of the game and had dug up their ornamental shrubs for corn and potatoes. However, Widow Simons did give argument when her property was one of those on the list. She insisted that her four acres at the edge of town was only suited to grow her prize winning roses. In the end, Mrs. Simons agreed to a visit with Gail and Eric tomorrow over tea.

Then there was the latest news from the Military regarding the state of the country and news from abroad. Texas still had its hold outs but was slowly succumbing to Military forces, New York was still in a state of controlled chaos and the refugee camps still under government supervision were being emptied into surrounding towns and cities.

Jake noticed the side ways looks and whispers from a few of the old timers in the crowd. Although Rogers's refugees had now been obsorbed into the population for the most part, many looked back on that time with disdain. Jericho was going to be more prepared this fall, but winter was still going to be tough, passable but tough. Accepting more mouths to feed that weren't born here was going to be a hard pill for Jericho to swallow if forced to do it again.

Now, this is where the town meeting got surreal. After finishing up the news, Gray opened the floor to open discussion and then after a few varied issues were covered, Dan Rupp stood to address dealings with Gracie's Market. Half way through his list of complaints a loud shrill giggle let out across the room. Jake along with Dan had focused in on Carl Mackey doing the giggling. Under their scrutiny Carl fell silent and the meeting continued.

Everyone knew Carl had issues, they had just been to busy surviving to see how much crazier he had become. Jimmy had already made it towards Carl before Jake could nod his head. Carl seemed to notice and sunk down into his spot in the crowd.

Mr. Rupp continued after the interruption to bring up the topic of Jericho's lacking legal system. Jake knew for a fact Gray was not ready for that discussion. Eric was still working on some sort of court structure and Grey was showing indecision on anything the government didn't give say so to. Basically, Gray was once again dragging his feet.

So by all rights, Carl did Gray and his brother a favor this evening when he started laughing again, only now he was yelling "government conspiracy" and "ghosts" in-between the giggles.

Jimmy tried to steer him towards the door, but Carl gave him the slip around two other townsfolk and headed strait for Jake, who by now made it close to Gray and Eric's side.

"Their gonna come and take our minds Jake. They already boom, boom, boomed us to scurry us like rats. Next it's our brains. Keep them government ghosts out the brain, keep em away."

Carl was now latched around Jakes knees and half the hall was on their feet and yelling. Jake saw the honest fear in Carl's wide eyes when Jimmy and Bill pulled him away and could not help the sense of foreboding it brought.

"Jimmy." Jake motioned the deputy to his side and spoke low. "Get Carl to the clinic with Bill. I don't know what they can do for him but I know they still have some tranquilizers from the last supply delivery and padded restraints from before. Carl doesn't need to be in the Jail, at least not yet." Jimmy jumped when Carl gave another yell.

"Jake, protect our brains…"

Momentarily stunned by the moment, Jake came back around to the slamming gavel of Gray and a room full of highly agitated townspeople. From his spot he raised his hands and joined Gray and the other voices at the front in calling order. The room grudgingly quieted then and the meeting was officially ended for the night.

"Never a dull moment, Honey." Gail came up to her boys and touched their arms.

"Never a dull moment, Mom." Gail leaned close to Jake's ear.

"These are the moments your granddad lived for." Meaning, not ones his rational father enjoyed. She smiled and walked away to meet with her ride.

Jake looked around the room and didn't see Heather.

"She's with Moe looking at the windmills out back." Stanley walked up to his friend, Mimi and Bonnie had already left the building. Jake just nodded. Sometimes it bugged him when his friend read his mind.

"Oh, and Jake…"

"Yeah?"

"Protect my brain Jakey. Oooooh!" Stan doled out one of his goof ball grins and elbowed Jake on the way out.

"Lost cause Stanley, it's already been compromised." Jake smiled after his friend and noticed Eric watching, his expression unreadable.

Green men didn't often talk about their feelings, especially with each other. Somehow Jake felt like his brother was pissed at him.

"What is it Eric?"

"Nothing Brother." Jake watched him walk away.

The past couple of weeks Jake had been feeling his brother's eyes on him more and more and still couldn't figure why. He tried talking to him once but he just made some sort of excuse to be somewhere else. Tonight, Jake wasn't even going to try and figure out Eric.

Between being christened 'brain protector' by the town schizo, fearless leader Gray's inaction, doing his best with his new job and protecting Jericho's future, lingering concerns regarding Hawkins Bomb and the Government, unfinished business with New Bern, and his love life; Eric being cranky with him was gonna have to wait.

'_Juggling too many balls son and ya can't grow a third arm.'_

He heard a familiar voice as he now stepped away from town hall and peered up into the night sky. It seemed he heard them the most when his head, heart and plate were the fullest. Tonight seemed to be his fathers turn.

Just barely a month had passed since his father's death and he missed him so much. If he had known that a year was all he would ever get to really know his dad… Jake shook his head with the too late realization.

His father was wrong; Johnston wasn't solely responsible for pushing Jake away. Jake did what he could back them to be pushed away. He always knew how to try his father's one last nerve. Jake wanted to tell him that, along with the arm length list of other things he had been regretting not telling his dad when he was alive. So standing out amongst the stars, Jake tried to find his own way of telling his father those things that made his heart heavy. He hoped he heard him.

"I just wish I could have told you Dad…"

'_You never had to tell me, Jake. You've shown me how you felt about me by the way you live, the way you carry yourself amongst the people of this town.'_

Jake lowered his head and rubbed at the bridge of his nose, stemming emotion.

"I'm tired Dad, I'm so tired, this whole year of tired and I can't stop…"

'_But you can make the job less. You've always had a problem dealing with your limitations, son. Never could understand how you felt the need to do everything on your own.'_

Jake shook his head and thought of the past. Since he could remember he always had so much to live up to. In the end he never felt that he was good enough, even when his cocky smile and brazen actions told the world otherwise. He pretended not to care and decided, in his then adolescent brain, to stop trying to live up to the Green name by not trying at all. If you didn't bother trying, you didn't have to face your limitations. And you didn't have to worry about letting people down, they just expected it.

Acting like he didn't give a damn reached a whole new level when Chris was killed and Jake ran away from Jericho. He knew then, without a doubt, he was a screw-up and he acted accordingly those years that followed. It wasn't till he shot that little girl on the edge of a sandy street in the middle of Iraq, that Jake didn't have to pretend anymore. Not only did Jake honestly stop caring, he stopped caring about himself, he simply shut down inside.

This was the man who came back to Jericho almost a year ago. The same who was saying goodbye to his family and friends before leaving town one last time. He hadn't lied to Heather when he told her he had no intention of ever coming back to Jericho after that day. Without his trust fund he knew he wasn't going to be able to stay under the radar from the government or Ravenwood. In a way he knew he was committing suicide by returning to San Diego. At that point it didn't mater much to him anymore.

But then the bombs…

Jake could look back and pinpoint the exact moment it all changed, when he cared again. It was when Stacey stopped breathing. Every bit of fear and self doubt drenched his spine in that moment. He froze. Stacey had become the little girl lying in blood soaked sand and all he could hear in his head was "not again" repeated over and over. Not again, he wasn't going to let it happen, so he didn't. He saved her life that night and with every breath Stacey took through those straws she saved his. That night Jake Green was given a second chance and he took it.

"Now I care too damn much. I can't let them down, Dad."

'_Then let people in Jake, toss a couple balls into someone else's hands. No one will think less of you son. ---There is one person you could start with…'_

"Dad…" Jake stepped further into the square, placed his hands to his face and growled in frustration. After this mornings "talk" he knew he was being double teamed.

"I'm arguing with ghosts now."

"I didn't think what Carl had was catchy?" Jake dropped his chin, not bothering to fight the smile she solicited from him. Heather emerged from the shadows and onto the sidewalk.

"Couldn't resist."

Heather fell in step with Jake and watched him when he looked back up to the stars once more. Heather couldn't count how many times she wished the haunted look Jake sometimes carried in his eyes would just disappear. The same look he seemed to be carrying tonight. Jake was a good man and he didn't deserve whatever it was he carried around with him. So when she could, she'd make him smile. Aside from repairs and ideas, it's all he let her do.

"What's going to happen to Carl now?"

"Honestly, I don't know. Most of the population has been dealing with their mental health issues at the bar. I don't think self medication is going to help Carl."

"I suppose not." Heather agreed. "You didn't put him in jail did you?"

"No, not unless we have to. Jimmy and Bill took him to the clinic for now, see what they can do." Jake looked over to her and felt the concern she felt. Heather cared about people and none of the events from this past year had changed that, if anything she found it in herself to care more. It was the good in her that drew him to her those first days.

"Need a lift?" Heather didn't have to answer; Jake had already pulled the strap of her bag off her shoulder. Jake thought he may have seen her wince but was unsure.

"If I said no, would you still take my bag home?" Jake gave another grin as answer.

"You shouldn't pack your bag so full. You carry too much on your shoulder."

"And you should talk." Jake gave her a sideways glance as they made it to his car and noticed a light line of red coming through her white shirt sleeve.

"What happened?"

"What?" She really hoped he hadn't seen.

"This…" Jake pulled at the rolled sleeve and could see the end of a long scratch. Heather pulled from his reach to go to the passenger's side. Jake threw her bag in the back of the car and got in.

"Caught my arm on the closet door in my room. I cleaned it, just should have wrapped it with something." Jake noticed she twitched when she lied.

'_She's lying.'_

'_I'm lying. What do I tell him? Hey Jake, I threw down with your High School sweetheart?' _

Jake started the car and it rumbled to life. He looked back over to her and watched her twitch.

"Just be careful at the mines tomorrow. That place is one big rusty nail."

'_Good, no more questions.'_

"I'll be careful Jake, it's just the mines. It's not like I'm heading off to New Bern. You don't have to worry about me." Heather mentally slapped herself for her choice in words. Jake unconsciously turned his knuckles white on the steering wheel and they both fell into an uncomfortable silence that lasted till the car nosed into the Green driveway.

"Going to work early?" He felt her eyes on him. Took him a moment to answer her.

"I was gonna check on Carl at the clinic and then probably stop at Bailey's, make sure the kids are being good after the town meeting." Jake tried to grin. Emily wanted to talk to him tonight and he was having a hard time looking at Heather while thinking about it.

She nodded her head quietly and reached into the back seat for her bag. In her haste she didn't gage the size of the bag with the size of the space between the seats and sheared off a few of the tools connected to the pockets. She gasped when they fell into Jakes lap.

"Oh God, I am so sorry..."

Heather didn't consider her next actions till her hands had gone back a second time for the fallen tools. Just as realization hit where her hand had been, Jakes hand clamped down upon her wrist and they both became silent and still.

She felt his breath fall erratically across her forehead and when she garnered enough bravery to look up at him she became confused, if not a little afraid. Jakes eyes were shut tight to her and his brows knit in some sort of expression of pain.

'_Did I hurt him?'_

"Jake?" His hand only tightened on her wrist.

"Jake, your hurting me…" His grip released with lightning speed and his darkened eyes opened wide with apology and embarrassment.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to…" He pulled back into his seat and turned from her.

"Goodnight Heather."

"Jake?"

"Don't…" His order came out as a plea. Again silence descended on the two.

At this point Heather didn't know how she was supposed to feel…embarrassment, hurt, she defiantly felt confused. So she picked an emotion she had come to grips with earlier in the day----anger.

"Don't what Jake? I'm not the same girl who jumped in your arms in the middle of town square less than a year ago. You have no right to shut down on me now and push me away. If anything at all, we are friends and I care about you…"

"Please, Heather…"

"Don't what Jake…" Her voice trembled but she kept her control. "…care?"

The silence ticked between them once more when he didn't answer.

"Is this where you start avoiding me again, Jake?" Jake swiftly turned to Heather, startling her. His eyes glittered black in the dim light. So much she could see in those eyes, all of it complicated. She realized she couldn't handle complicated right now. Heather turned from him and opened the car door to step out. She stopped when she heard his voice softly drift out to her.

"I avoided you then because I didn't want to hurt you and I still don't." _'I'm not good for you.' _"I'm not the man you think I am." _'This man killed a child, Heather, a child.'_

A little bit of her anger slipped away and was replaced by hurt.

"No Jake, I guess you are not the man I know you to be." She turned back around to meet his eyes. "The man I know isn't a coward."

Heather shut the car door quietly and marched up to the house, leaving Jake feeling like he had been hit by a ball bat in the gut.

'_She told him.'_

'_Give him a break, Dad.'_

"God, I need a drink." Jake revved the engine and headed towards Bailey's.

'_Now were talking.'_

'_Dad…'_

…………………………………………………

Baileys was crowded and the music blared as Jake pushed his way through the throng of neighbors and friends. He was starting to regret coming in. Baileys wasn't proving to be the distraction Jake needed, just loud. Jake raised his hand to Mary and was soon rewarded with a drink.

"Is Eric still at the Hall?"

"Yeah, Mary. Your boy had to stay after class." Mary gave him a questioning look and Jake understood how flip that must have sounded. He wasn't angry with Mary.

"He should be over soon. Just has to finish up with Gray." Jake gave his brother's girl a warm grin and touched her hand on the bar before she went to her next customer.

Jake looked down into his drink and wished he could drown in it, but knew he had to work. He tried to gear his head back to the laundry list of things he needed to do tonight and tomorrow, but could not change gears. Or was it his heart that wouldn't cooperate?

'_I'm batting a thousand today.' _

"Buy ya a drink?" He hadn't realized his first was gone.

"Na, free coffee and alcohol comes with the star." He knew she would find him.

"Emily…"

"I think we need to talk Jake." He looked her over and couldn't put a read on her just yet. That unsettled him. The night was just getting better and better.

Jake let Emily grab his hand and pull him through the crowd to the outside of Baileys and then they found a spot by an old oak.

"What's up Em?" He watched her stiffen and then pull at the silk scarf around her neck. He somehow felt he'd already said the wrong thing. By the pointed look in her eyes he knew he did.

"What's up? Its more like where have you been? I thought you were giving us another chance Jake, but every time I turn around you're canceling on dinner or trying to be Super Jake and cant be found." By now her arms sat across her chest and all her attention was on Jake.

"Em, I have a job to do…"

"I understand that Jake, I really do. But I also understand your need to apologize to me and this town for the stupid things you had done in the past. I've got news for you Jake, you've done it. Now take some time for yourself, for us."

Emily gaped at him when he did not speak, she had expected him to at least look at her but now he was turned from her and looking back inside the bar.

How could she not see him? Emily had always seemed to understand him when they were dating. _'But this is who I really am now, she doesn't see that.'_

"Do you think that's what all this means to me now, Emily. This is bigger than me or my guilt or my need to make amends. I can't stop doing my part in keeping this town safe and running. It's my job and it means that much to me." Later, he'd look back and realize it was the first time he acknowledged that fact.

"Loving your job is one thing…" Emily's voice was now raised. "…but it doesn't have to be your life." Jake grabbed her arm and brought her closer to him in hopes of quieting her.

"Emily, this town is my life. I can never be that same selfish person I was when I left you, I wouldn't want to be. And if some part of you is hoping to see that man again, he's gone." Emily stopped struggling in his grasp and glared.

"Then I guess this past month I've been chasing ghosts."

Jake pulled from her now, noticing some of the bar had taken to watching their actions outside.

"I never wanted to hurt you, Em." He said low.

"Yeah, but you just keep doing it." Jake placed his hand across the back of his neck trying to steady his temper.

"Not anymore."

Emily felt shut down. She could only look at him in disbelief.

"So this is really it, Jake?" She was regaining her steam. "After all we've been through together it ends outside of Bailey's?"

"Damn it Emily, it ends now like this before it gets too dirty for either of us to clean up. I do care about you Emily and I don't want to loose you as a …"

"Friend?" Emily scoffed. "You already have a 'girl---friend' Jake. The little grease monkey with the school girl crush on the town hero."

Jakes eyes no longer held any apology or pliancy when he leveled them at Emily's now petulant glare. The night around them felt a great deal colder. He refused to give her cruel intentions anymore fodder.

"This is over, Emily."

"Do you love her?" He hadn't expected the question.

"Do you love her?" She demanded. Jake placed his hand to his mouth and looked away so she couldn't see his eyes.

"God, that bad?" Jake looked up in time to see the hurt on Emily's face.

"Emily…" Jake reached a hand to her shoulder but she turned from him. His hand ended up brushing away the silk scarf from around her neck, revealing a strangely familiar set of red streaks.

"What's this?" Emily's eyes now seemed to glow like a furnace while she placed the scarf back over her "cat scratch".

"Why don't you go ask your 'friend'." She growled and then was gone.

He listened to her boots hit the pavement till she got in her car and pulled out onto the street. Now only the sounds of the bar and the wind could be heard. Suddenly a switch went on in Jake's head…

"I'll be damned!"

TBC.


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: **Jericho is not mine, nor it's characters.

**Authors Note: **I still think of this as therapy even knowing the show has been given a second chance this fall. I have to say this was one of those chapters I thought I knew what I was doing with and then ended up with something totally different. The start and the finish are the only things that stayed the same. Hope I didn't jump around too much, but this chapter is some of Gail's musings. How many of us think in a strait line? Not me!

**Warning:** TBC ahead.

**Chapter Eight: Gail's Musings**

by Ann Pendragon

"One one thousand – two one thousand – thee one thousand – BREATH. Come on folks, that's not nearly enough air getting in there. One one thousand – two one thousand – thee one thousand. Make sure the head isn't tilted to far back and be sure to pinch the nose.

BREATH. Now check if they are breathing and then pulse. O.K.? Good. Now change with one of your partners." Gail leaned back against the front table in the hall and motioned for Bonnie to help the other students re-adjust their CPR dolls on the old floor mats.

This was the second of three CPR and First Aid Certification classes Gail would be giving this week. Today's rag tag group consisted of several Sheriff and Fire Department employees and recent volunteers, clinic volunteers, assorted citizen's and a few men from the town garage. Gail grinned at that; Heather had taken it upon herself to urge a couple of the men and their wives into the class. Grease Monkeys were notorious for tough scrapes and stitches.

Before the bombs, Gail had worked for the Kansas Chapter of the Red Cross part time and most of Jericho's citizens and professionals over the past eighteen years had received their certification through Gail. This class of "professionals" was proving to be her most challenging.

Gail turned her attention to one of her more challenging "professionals". To her dismay he was pretending to make out with a CPR doll and had half the class laughing to distraction.

"Stanley Eugene Richmond! This is serious and mandatory if you are to continue helping my son. Do you understand?" Stanley nearly dropped the doll getting it back on the mat and Gail lost her battle not to smile when Bonnie made it to her brother and hit him sharply on the arm.

"Oww, hey…"

"You're acting like an ass Stanley." Bonnie signed as she walked past and smiled to Jake when he snorted despite himself beside his best friend.

It was moments like these that made Gail feel some sort of normal, whatever normal was passing for these days. She wasn't even that perturbed at Stanley's antics. They were all looking for a little bit of "normal"; some activity that provoked a welcome memory of a day or moment when their lives weren't so complicated by the simple need to survive.

With sixteen hour or more work days for most presently in the room, getting down time during a work day and joking around in a class room was as close to "old normal" they'd seen in a year. Unless you counted the bar fly's in the room. Getting drunk at the bar was still considered a pretty big "normal".

'_Just as long as they learn.' _

It had been decided by herself, Dr. Kenchy and Jake that everyone presently working for or volunteering for the Sheriffs Department, Fire Department and Clinic were to be certified for First Aid and CPR. Gail had merged both professional and non professional course material and came up with a few other lessons with the help of Kenchy and Jake. Gail did try and keep in mind that half of Jericho's more recent batch of professionals were not normally geared to this sort of course or had been to any sort of class since high school. A year ago they were farmers, janitors, house wives and shop keepers. Now out of pure need and many of these peoples sense of duty, they had become Jericho's protectors and caretakers. Gail couldn't help but smile at the motley crew in front of her.

It had to be duty that kept them working for the town; payment was whatever resources that could be scraped up by town hall. Eric had just started getting Gray to add salt as part of payment. It was one less thing the people had to trade for and could trade if they needed to. Stanley and the Reynolds farm were going to offer up farm produce when they could and even Mary had offered to donate some of her finer fire water as payment.

Gail began to walk around her students again, pointing out mistakes and giving praise when warranted before settling behind her son and Stanley. Jake was about to break one of his promises to his mother again...

"Jake, don't you dare make one more call on that radio. You are here now. Jimmy and Bill are watching the town. They have done it before." Jake gave his mother the crooked grin he reserved for coming home late or forgetting to take out the trash, before placing the radio back on the chair beside him.

"Come on Mrs. G, the Sheriff here can do a tracheotomy with a pocket knife and roll of juice box straws, cut him some slack." Jake turned back to practicing chest compressions without a word.

It was Gail's estimation that Jake was not welcoming the attention from the class that his friend's announcement had now placed on him. Jake still kept tight lipped, even to her; about his activities and lessons learned those five years he was away.

"Stanley…" Gail warned.

"Sorry Mrs. Green." Gail could only shake her head.

"Does Mimi know who she is marrying in three days?"

"Yes Mam. Said she likes a challenge."

"She must Stanley, she must." Gail gave a chuckle and looked around the room.

"O.K. class, one more time, switch with one of your group. Were just about finished up today. We'll take the test after this next round."

If Gray had any say in the grand scheme of things, these classes wouldn't be happening this week. He had originally argued that this sort of activity was frivolous of town resources (i.e. the workers and volunteers time and the fact the classes would be free to anyone else who signed up). Gail had passionately disagreed…

"_My husband would have said it was frivolous not to educate Jericho's citizens; not only to protect and feed it's self, but to also have the knowledge to help it's fellow citizens if the occasion calls."_

Gail knew Gray would fold like a deck of cards when she mentioned Johnston. Even in death his presence was felt by Jericho's Mayor, especially when summoned by his widow. Maybe she was playing dirty, using her dead husbands memory, but she was absolutely certain said husband would not only approve of her tactics, but be grinning from ear to ear.

'_Abigail, you were always my force of nature.'_

'_Johnston…'_

Gail missed him so much it hurt if she let herself think of him too long. Since his death she had made it a point not to have the energy or time to think about her loss.

She worked where she was needed, often that was the clinic. Even with the memories of April still fresh there, she knew it was where she needed to be. She also gave her time to the various volunteer activities at her church and at town hall. And recently she had these certification classes to keep her busy.

Gail had found other distractions, other than work to keep her mind and her heart full. Her children, both biological and adopted, had become something of a pastime for Gail. More precisely looking in on their love lives.

'_Lord, I've become one of those nosey old matchmakers…'_

After recent events, she felt someone had to step into the mess her oldest son had allowed to perpetuate in his love life. Scheduling these classes had been the perfect example.

Jake was supposed to take his class yesterday but got called away all the sudden when he realized Emily was in the same class. Emily also changed her class day only hers was now to be tomorrow because she found out too late that Jake had changed his class time. Gail and most anyone in town was now aware of the "spat" in front of Bailey's a week ago between Jake and Emily. Frankly, Gail felt just a little relieved Jake was attempting to close that chapter in his life. In the past her son had a habit of wanting things that weren't good for him.

Back to the class schedule, the changes in the schedule didn't stop there. When Jake changed classes for today, Heather found out and opted to get herself tangled up in a long repair at the Richmond farm and was now going to be taking her class tomorrow when Emily is scheduled. For some reason Gail did not see tomorrow being a comfortable day for either girl. Gail was unsure what had occurred between the women but was pretty sure it involved her son in some way.

Now Heather…

Gail knew exactly why the girl was avoiding her son like the plague this past week. After last weeks town meeting, Gail had made it home to an empty house and was about to turn in for the night when she heard the rev of her sons car in the drive. The front door downstairs could be heard creaking open and then she heard Heather's tears. By the time Gail had gotten to her, she was sitting on the floor crying and hugging her tool bag as if it could give her some sort of relief.

"_Oh Honey. What happened?" Heather kept shaking and clutched her bag even closer. Gail had never seen the girl fall apart before, let alone cry like there was no tomorrow. Heather was strong and resilient, Gail admired the girl for those qualities and many people relied on her because of them._

"_Please Honey talk to me." Gail had kneeled before her and took Heather's tear stained face in her hands as any mother would. This girl had long become apart of her family._

_When Heather did answer, Gail was not entirely surprised by what she heard…_

"_I love him…I love Jake and I can't stop. I can't even try…" Heather then hiccupped and burst into a fresh batch of tears._

_Gail had been uplifted and heartbroken all at the same time with Heathers admission. She wanted to tell the girl her son loved her with all his heart, but was still too damn scared to say it aloud. Gail wanted to tell her that she had never seen her son so happy or so whole because of her, but she could not; it was something her son needed to do. So she took the younger woman in her arms and allowed the girl her cry. Lord knew loving a Green man could make the toughest woman sob or scream on occasion._

"_It's O.K. Everything will be O.K." She hoped her son wouldn't make a liar of her. _

"All right everyone, please bring the dolls up to the front of the room and place them near their bags. We are now going to take the written test…"

Gail passed the sheets and scrap paper to Bonnie along with the pens to disperse among the class. As the test got underway, Gail found her attentions back on her son.

Jake had been distant this week, more distant than her private and stoic son was known to be. Gail knew how hard he worked and what weight he piled heavy on his own shoulders. Even as a child her oldest son took it upon himself to suffer and even rejoice in silence. But this week was different. She thought that maybe it was the recent bickering he and Eric had taken to again. She knew something was brewing between the boys but could get neither to say a word about it.

And of course her son's love life had been a good reason to be preoccupation. Since the night of the fight with Emily and moment with Heather, Jake had kept his distance from most, even going as far as taking a full day to himself away from town two days ago. Gail estimated it was the first day off he had taken since his last injury this past winter.

"Gail. Eric and I need to talk to Jake. You're going to want to come too." Gail turned to the doorway to find both Gray and her youngest son interrupting her class. Gray looked to be a bundle of nerves and excitement, but Eric appeared grave as he stared into the classroom at his brother. Gail felt her stomach clench. It pulled even tighter when Jake stood from his test, picked up his radio and walked from the room with little emotion and not a word.

"Class will you excuse me." Gail nodded to Bonnie and followed her sons and Grey to the Mayors office down the hall.

"Gray, what's going on?"

"How about you tell Mom, Brother. I think you know more than us, since you were there." Eric had answered before Gray could speak, his eyes trained on his older brother the entire time. Gail felt the accusatory tone in her youngest voice and did not like how it made her feel.

"Boys – Jake. What is going on?" She looked to her sons for an answer but it was Gray that finally spoke.

"Gail, we just got word from New Bern that two days ago Mayor Constantino was arrested and tried for a list of crimes against his people. He's sentenced to hang, day from tomorrow."

**TBC.**


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer:** Don't own Jericho or it's characters. Pity...

**Authors Note:** This chapter is not as long, but life was too short this week. I am over half finished with the next chapter (Chap.10 Boys Will Be Boys)

This chapter starts as the continuation of the scene in the last chapter and makes references to _Chapter 4 Debts Owed. _Hope the chapter sounds plausible for the story and the characters. My first attempt at "behind closed doors, secret agent" type of stuff. Hope you like, if not tell me why not. It helps me improve.

**Warning:** This is a Jake chapter. Look for language.

**Chapter Nine: Leaders**

by Ann Pendragon

"Gray, what's going on?"

"How about you tell Mom, Brother. I think you know more than us, since you were there." Eric had answered before Gray could speak, his eyes trained on his older brother the entire time. Gail felt the morose tone in her youngest voice and did not like how it made her feel.

"Boys – Jake. What is going on?" She looked to her sons for an answer but it was Gray that finally spoke.

"Gail, we just got word from New Bern that two days ago Mayor Constantino was arrested and tried for crimes against his people. He's sentenced to hang, day from tomorrow." The room fell into silence.

Gail digested the information before meeting her oldest son's eyes.

"You already knew this happen and didn't tell any of us?" His mother's voice was not accusatory, but no where close to sounding pleased.

"Yes Mom…" he spoke reverently, keeping her stare.

"And when you went away earlier this week…"

"I went to New Bern for his arrest and trial, Russell and his men planned it to be quick. I wanted to be there." _'So I could watch the look on the bastards face when it all came crashing down.' _

"And you knew about this how long?" Jake stalled on the answer.

At this point Gray had become cognizant of just how much he had been out of the loop and was scowling like Eric.

"As the Mayor, I had the right to know what Jericho's Sheriff was conspiring to do with our rival town…" Gray bellowed.

"You had the right to know nothing." Jakes voice boomed out over Gray and silenced the man instantly. "Taking down Constantino was an internal matter between the citizens of New Bern. All that was asked of me was my silence and my promise not to kill the son-of-a-bitch myself." Jake regretted seeing his mother flinch at his words and tone. Gray had a knack for bringing out Jakes coarser side.

He took his mothers eyes again with his own. He needed her accordance, he needed her to understand that he did this to keep his family and town safe and by doing it this way, help repair the wounds shared between the two towns.

Now looking back at the past month, Jake could see the changes in himself that began the day he allowed his fathers murderer to live. His original plan had been to put a bullet between the eyes of New Bern's Mayor after the conclusion of their first meeting with the government. He wasn't thinking then, he was feeling, he was reacting. Johnston Green, a great man, was dead and the man who caused it walked among them; it was too much for Jake to bear.

Jake was going to leave the talks early that day, take his truck just outside of New Bern to wait for the Mayors return and finish what Constantino started. He didn't consider the consequences or what he could loose with this act of vengeance, only the satisfaction he would feel in carrying it out.

Not one thing, but many changed his mind that day. It began with Russell Williams stepping up to him before the meeting and shaking his hand…

……………………………………………..

"_Jake…"_

"_Russell…" _

_Russell had already been keenly watching Jericho's favored son since his people's arrival. He needed no proof, only his gut to tell him Jake Green was looking for revenge and stopping him was paramount if either of their towns were to know true peace._

_With Jakes hand still firmly in his grasp, Russell brought the other man closer to his side. _

"_It will help neither of our towns if you do what I know you've decided." _

_Both men froze for that moment and looked around the field where they stood. The other men in Russell's group had already moved into the tent. _

"_We have a plan, Jake. Constantino may have taken a great deal from you, but from his own people he has taken even more. Help both of our towns get justice, not revenge." _

_Jake was listening, the determined look in the other mans eyes compelled him to, but Jake was not yet swayed. Killing Constantino was so close he could taste it. And then he heard his father's voice for the first time since his death…_

'_Fight smart Jake. You are responsible for our people now. Fight smart to fight another day.' _

_For a moment he had felt his heart stop and his mind spin. Then out of the corner of his eye, Jake noticed Heather come out of the tent across the field and motion for the two men to come in for the start of the meeting. In that moment his world came back in focus. _

"_Jake. The meeting is starting." Heather yelled. Jake raised his hand to her and then watched her reenter the shadows of the tent. Russell could not help but notice the change in the other mans gaze. _

"_Please Jake; help us do what's right. Help all of us get justice." _

_Jake turned back to the other man and met him toe to toe, eyes of granite once more._

"_I'm there when it goes down."_

………………………………………………

Jake wouldn't be lying if he said it was one of the hardest choices he ever made. Constantino himself nearly changed Jakes mind under the tent that day. Whether Constantino realized it or not, Jake gave him an extra month of life. Getting a punch in the face had been a small price for that gift.

The following week and the next, Jake kept in touch with Russell through military supervised trades between the two towns and occasional radio chatter when both towns received news from Fort Liberty regarding changing weather or national news.

…….……………………………………..

"_Heather keeping up with those windmills?" It had only been a couple days since Jake and Heathers moment in the Roadrunner. _

"_Doing well. The shop is going to need an extra blade for one of them, maybe more. Think maybe we can work out something extra to get those sent next drop off? Extra salt maybe?"_

"_Yeah, that'll probably do."_

"_Speaking of Heather and shipments, I appreciate the car." Jake smoothed his hand across the outside of the Roadrunners driver side door and grinned when he heard Russell chuckle over the radio. _

"_She was determined and I couldn't say no to the plight of a man and his car." Jake shook his head and smiled. _

"_Jake. She might kill me for saying this, but Heather went through a lot when she was back in New Bern. Might want to ask her sometime, cause I know she won't say otherwise. I have a feeling she'll need the support of her friends in the days ahead."_

"_I'll talk to her. Soon as she stands still long enough." It had been Heather avoiding him the last two days and now he could feel this new bit of news chewing at his stomach. _

"_Jake."_

"_Yeah."_

"_Think you guys will be able to handle the sunny weather coming?"_

"_Sunny? We're getting more rain this week."_

"_Trust me Jake; the men of my family have a gift for telling the weather. I'm saying sunshine ahead. You'll be pulling down your hat and car visor in the coming week." _

_Jake felt his heart quicken then settle. He reached up to his visor and pulled it down allowing a folded scrap of magazine to fall into his lap. The article was from an old law book, the number on the page was circled in red. The date he had been waiting for. _

"_Understand. I'll be sure to keep my eyes shaded. Jericho out."_

……………………………………………

"Mom…" Gail still stood before her oldest and now was looking away. He could see the start of tears in her eyes.

"Jake honey, I'm going outside for some air. Could you please tell Bonnie I'll be back to help with the tests." She gave him a week smile that held tired eyes, but her touch on his arm was firm. "Jake, you did the right thing. I trust you to do what's best for this town and so would have your father." Gail lifted her hand to her son's face and then left the room.

Jake placed his hand to his mouth and breathed out. His mother's approval was what he hoped for before turning to the other men in the room. Gray and Eric were angry and Jake had no patience for hurt feelings. He needed them to understand the opportunity they had before them, what good they could accomplish. Jake stepped to Gray and took on the tone reminiscent the day his father died and he made the choices for his town.

"At tonight's town meeting you will let our people know Constantino has been brought to justice by his people. And you will let this town know Constantino was why we went to war, not New Bern. Tell Jericho that their neighbors, not adversaries, are cleaning house and will need our prayers." Jake stepped a fraction closer.

"Tell them these things and you can start the healing between Jericho and New Bern, and help put aside some of the worst days this town has had to endure thus far..." Jake's eyes now bore down on the politician. "…or so help me God Gray." Gray kept his silence but Jake could see comprehension emerging from the Mayors initial anger and fear. And then he looked to his brother, knowing their time had yet to come.

Jake turned from the men and left the office, making his way back to his mother's temporary class room. He had a test to take and Stanley needed a shoulder to look over.

Later that evening Gray gave a speech to his town, stressing compassion and understanding for their neighbors and putting the past behind. There was too much to have happen between New Bern and Jericho to be forgotten, but at least there was now hope for both towns to be able to have the chance to turn a new corner, at least in time.

As Gray delivered the news, Jake looked out over the room to who he needed to see. Jake had watched relief fall across Heather's face along with the tears that entered her eyes when the news was given. While his mother placed a comforting arm around her, Heather turned to him, zeroing in on his location from across the room. For that moment, the week of awkward silences and avoidance was of no consequence. Constantino's fall meant something to both of them. Heather's relief meant everything to Jake.

After the meeting concluded, Jake filed out with the rest of the crowd but not before giving an approving nod towards Gray up at the pulpit. The Mayor was presently receiving praise for tonight's speech from some of the town.

Out in the square Jake saw his mother and Heather talking with Mimi and Mary. With the smiles on their faces, he figured it was probably about Mimi and Stanley's fast approaching nuptials. Jake smiled, his face had become accustomed to smile anytime Heather or his mothers did. The wedding was another reason for his loved ones to celebrate.

"Jake!" Broad hands came down upon his shoulder and then nearly strangled him with his jacket collar. "Bachelor party, best man. Remember, we drew the short straw and the gals get tomorrow night."

Jake grudgingly fell from his peaceful trance. He had intended on trying to talk to Heather again tonight. _Best laid plans…_

Jake gave in to his friend and allowed Stanley to drag him away in a playful choke hold. He had duties to perform and men to get drunk.

**TBC.**


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer:** Don't own Jericho or its characters. Pity...

**Authors Note:** This chapter was a little trickier for me, but it was still fun Jericho therapy. I had to try and imagine how specific characters would behave at different stages of inebriation. I hope I kept them believable and entertaining at the same time. Tell me what ya think. Also, thank you JT for your input into the wild wonderful world of moonshine and grain alcohol and its effects, and to JT and Midnight for your beta assistance and use as very useful sounding boards.

Also, the boys are singing some Garth Brooks at the party and an old Chuck Berry song "My Ding-A-Ling when their entering the house. My dad use to sing My-Ding-A-Ling at the supper table when we were kids, I think to bother my mom along with the "Fish Heads" song. I blame him for my sense of humor.

**Warning:** Language and states of undress. We got drunken boys here.

**Chapter Ten: Boys Will Be Boys**

by Ann Pendragon

After yet another drunken rendition of 'Friends in Low Places' accompanied by Sean's guitar, Jake wandered away from the debauchery at the campfire for a nature call.

Today was now slowly creeping up on tomorrow. He'd lost track of how many jugs of Bailey's finest they had consumed at this point of the bachelor party, but it was certain none of them would escape a hangover later tomorrow.

Finishing up, Jake staggered out of the brush, the toe of his boot catching on a rock at the lake's shore. At least that's what he told himself.

"Can't hold your liquor. Getting old," he mumbled to himself as he took in the view before him

Out across the lake, the moon lit a path to the shore. Jake always liked the water. A lake, a river, an ocean, it didn't matter. It always took him to this peaceful spot inside himself. The same place flying had for him. Even at his most foolish, it never escaped him how small he felt when he stood at the water's edge or nosed a plane into the stars.

'_Ad astra per aspera'_. E.J. Green had often quoted the Kansas state motto after a flying lesson with his young grandson.

_'To the stars through difficulty__, my boy; it's what the best of us fly boys try to do. We take these heavy wings and try to fulfill our need to fly ourselves as close to the stars as we can, knowing it ain't likely we'll ever get to touch 'em. _

'_It's the struggle in trying, even when you know the task is damn near impossible that shows you just how great you can be. Humbles you too. Just like true love, it puts it all into perspective.' _

"That it does, Granddad. Ad perpetuam memorium old man." Jake had learned more than just flying, drinking and raising hell from his grandfather. E.J. had another thing he liked to say…'_Country don't mean stupid._'

Jake grinned to himself as he stretched his arms out over his head and heard his shoulder pop. 'Yep, feelin' old and sentimental.'

Out of the corner of his eye he could make out a staggering figure leaving the light of the campfire, heading towards him. The figure didn't speak till making it to Jake's side and not till it could steal enough courage to begin.

"I knew you were hiding something from us—well, more than usual." Eric swayed before his brother.

Jake had seen his brother's face buried in an old milk jug of Bailey's hooch for most of the evening. If the slur in Eric's speech and the stagger in his step told him anything, it was only just now he had taken his face out of said jug.

Jake kept his silence, not sure where this was going just yet. He'd let his brother have enough rope…

"Did you hear me, Jake?" Louder now. "I said I knew you were keeping something from us, from me…"

"If that's what you thought, why didn't you ask?" Jake knew the question would quiet him. Eric didn't want to know--not really. His family was good at don't ask, don't tell.

"He was my father too," Eric yelled. "I had the right to know the man who killed him was gonna be-be brought to justice."

Jake wouldn't look at Eric, even as he shuffled closer. He had been expecting this conversation since this morning.

"Look, my hands were tied. Less people knowing what was going down, less likely the plan would be compromised. Besides, it wasn't my call."

"Bull shit, Jake. BULL SHIT! You wanted revenge, you wanted to get Dad's killer and you thought you were the only one who could do it--"

"Yes, I wanted revenge!" Jake yelled, his eyes reflecting the far off light of the camp fire. "I wanted Constantino dead the first time I saw him off the battlefield, but I didn't follow through. I let someone else do what _I_ promised to do. _A rope_ gets to do what I should have done. Is that what you want to hear, Eric? Is it?" Even now Jake could not deny the feeling of being cheated, knowing full well he did the right thing.

Jake shook his head at his brother in frustration. "You didn't need to be a part of that, Eric. Dad wanted better for you…"

"How dare you presume to know what is better for me." Eric boomed. "Or what Dad would have wanted. YOU'RE NOT DAD!"

An odd silence fell over the brothers while the sound of guitar and drunken laughter played across the night air. Jake's brain was too foggy to comprehend why Eric's words stung as much as they did. He knew he wasn't Dad, nor hope to ever come close. Hell, he had barely been a good brother to the man before him. Jake rubbed his hand across his chest and looked away from Eric's sullen scowl.

"You're drunk, Eric. We are not going to do this tonight…" Jake began to walk away.

"Do you think you're the only one who can fix everything?" Eric demanded. "Damn it, Jake, stop!"

Jake would have continued to walk away if it hadn't been for the hand on his shoulder followed by an unexpected punch that sent his ass to the muddy lake shore. Jake raised his hand to his jaw in surprise before looking up at his brother. Eric didn't look angry any longer, he looked like he was going to throw up.

"You hit me?" Jakes surprise kept him in the mud.

"I-I-I didn't know what else to do. I didn't have a brick wall for you to hit. You-you never listen…" Eric was now definitely turning green.

"YOU HIT ME." Jakes eyes now narrowed.

Eric walked in a crooked circle before his stunned and angry big brother, running his hands distractedly through his hair.

"Jake, you were a shit brother. I didn't like you most of the time, not with the shit you pulled. But I loved you anyway." Jake pulled his hand from his jaw and rolled his eyes towards Eric. So far his brother was not making a good case for not getting hit back.

"But you're not a shit brother anymore, you're good… but you still act like you're the only one who cares what happens to you. Even then, you could care less." Eric took a breath. Jake kept his silence.

"I just got my brother back, Jake. I-I've already lost too many people to lose you too." Eric staggered where he stood and then flopped down into the mud beside Jake with a thud.

One minute Eric had been pissed, berating him. Then in the next, the stress and fear returned. The emotional rollercoaster was getting to be too much for Jake's stomach to take.

Jake looked to Eric and knew his little brother was lost in the alcoholic confusion in his head. Eric had always been a lightweight in the ring of drinking. Jake brushed off his hands against his knees, and then ran them through his hair.

"My hands were tied. Even if I could have told you, I still wouldn't have. Constantino has caused enough pain to this family. You and Mom didn't need anymore reminders of--of Dad's death. You've both gone through enough." If he could he would have taken away all his loved one's hurts, but these actions would have to do.

"What about you big brother, who makes those calls for you?"

His brother's words hit him in the heart. Jake searched Eric's face and saw his worry, magnified even more so by the alcohol in their systems. Jake hated how it made him feel. '_Damn alcohol_.'

"I just wanted to protect you." Jake didn't answer Eric's question.

Even drunk, Eric knew better than to expect one.

"I know, Jake. Just maybe you should let us protect you sometime."

Jake began to laugh at that, not meaning too. "Yeah, I feel real protected after that punch. You hit like a girl, Eric." And just like that, the somberness of the mood was broken. Both men began to chuckle, leading into full-out laughter.

"You know, Jake; I think you made Gray piss his pants this morning."

"Yeah, well someone has to rein him in when he gets a burr under his blanket. I'm damned that I can't shoot him." With some difficulty and much laughter, both men helped the other up off the mud and back down the beach to the campfire and their friends.

The fire had begun to dim and the music had stopped, but not the bachelor party. Sean was now wet and shivering on a log by the fire while Mike from patrol was laughing hysterically at him. Even Jimmy had made good on his promise to stop by and check on the festivities. The groom, however, was no where to be found.

"Jake. Eric. Did you guys fall in the mud?"

Before they could answer Deputy Taylor's question, both men were grabbed around the waist in a running tackle by a very drunk, very wet, and very naked Stanley.

"Yeeee Haw…."

Thing about the lake in spring, it's cold as hell.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

"…swimming cross turtle creek,

Man, them snappers all around my feet.

Sure was hard swimmin' cross that thing,

with both hands holding my

DING-A-LING-A-LING!"

"Boys? Jimmy?"

Gail recognized the cars before she uncocked Johnston's old Smith & Wesson and unlocked the door; precautions that had quickly become habit thanks to her sons' insistence. Up the walk came the casualties of Stanley's bachelor party. Jake was half clothed in a blanket and wet with a happily glazed look in his eyes; Eric was being supported by Jimmy. Eric was soaked also and looked like he'd be seeing his supper again soon enough.

"Mrs. Green. Uhh, Eric's kinda gettin' heavy…" Gail raised her brows in a resigned gesture and sighed.

'_My boys_.' "Just bring them in, Jimmy. Put Eric in the den and take his shoes and shirts. I've got his brother."

Jake gave Eric a lazy grin from the bit of wall he was holding up.

"Nighty-night, little brother."

"Yes, Mrs. Green." Jimmy nodded his head and pulled the nearly unconscious Eric along with him.

Gail could hear a second chorus coming up the porch steps and then stumble through the front door.

"Mrs. Green, can we crash here tonight? We're wasted." Stanley stood in her doorway with only a blanket, his boots and a smile. Gail placed her hands to her hips and just shook her head at her adopted son and the passed out young man he pulled along with him.

"Where are your clothes, Stanley, and why are all of you wet?"

"Dipping skinny, Mrs. G." Stanley spoke proudly. "I think they're in the lake."

Beside her, Jake broke out into a laughing fit and fell backwards into the nearby recliner making it fully pop out to a full recline. By that point Stanley had made it to the couch with an unconscious Sean, and was presently singing about "playing with his bells".

"Oh wow, they are so blitzed." The voice on the stairs behind her told Gail she had her backup. Heather stood on the last step wrapped in her robe, eyes as round as saucers.

"That they are, dear. Could you go back upstairs to the linen closet and grab some towels and sheets? Also dry socks from Jake's room; four pair."

Gail secretly grinned when Heather stopped on the second step, momentarily distracted by the full bodied stare her oldest son was able to deliver from half-lidded eyes. Jake's granddad had been a charmer too when he was drunk. Many a town widow could have attested to that fact.

"Heather, honey, we need to get these boys warm and dry…" she coaxed. Heather, coloring, turned away from Jake's gaze quickly, and then tripped on the third step going back up the stairs.

'_Those two really need to be locked in a confined space together…_' Gail grinned. '_I am turning into an old matchmaker._'

"Yeeeee Hawwww" Stanley half mumbled, half yawned. "You're the bestest best ma…" and then he passed out in Sean's lap.

"That's going to go well in the morning." Jake snorted while trying to arrange himself in the recliner, nearly falling out.

"Jake Green, you are the Sheriff of this town…"

"Dad told me why he had to run the big show without his pants." Jake slurred with a knowing grin.

"He did not."

Jake arched his brow while his mother arched hers, drawing a short silence.

"Green men are insane," she finally spat out disapprovingly. Jake gave a triumphant grin while settling back into the recliner.

"Oh, no. Wet clothes off, mister. NOW! I am getting too old to wrestle you out of your clothes."

Jake's grin got even bigger when he half stood, half fell from the chair, letting his blanket fall to the floor revealing a bare chest.

"Got 'em off."

Gail just shook her head while pulling at Sean's sopping jacket and T-shirt.

"Shoes and socks, Jake. Pants, too. And you better be wearing drawers."

At this point, Jimmy made it back from his task to find his near-naked leader struggling to pull wet pants over his boots. Jake failed and landed back in the chair.

"Just stay there, son." Gail sighed. "It's your bed tonight."

It was way past time to leave, Jimmy thought. "Ahh, Mrs. Green?"

"Oh Jimmy, thank you so much."

"No problem Mrs. Green, I got Eric started for ya and I even put a trashcan by his head. Do you need my help with the rest?" Jimmy jerked his thumb toward the couch potatoes and his boss the recliner jockey, with a hesitant grin.

"No, Heather and I will take it from here. Thank you." Gail smiled kindly. "But you could stop by Mary's and tell her we have Eric. Mimi and Bonnie already expected these two to get only this far." Gail nodded to the drowned rats on the couch.

"Sure, Mrs. Green, soon as I drop off Mike. His wife sure is gonna be cranky."

"Well, at least she only has the one." Jimmy smiled and turned to Jake.

"See ya later, boss."

"Not boss…" Jake grunted.

"Okay, Jake."

Gail smiled after the deputy as he quietly closed the door, then turned back to the spectacle in her living room.

"Was that Jimmy?" Gail turned and met Heather with her load of dry linens, towels and socks.

"Yes, he helped get the boys home." Gail threw a large quilt over Jake, who still had his pants around his ankles in the chair. "I'm going to finish up with Eric and stoke the fires. Could you see to these boys' shoes and socks? I'll be back to help with the rest."

Heather nodded as Gail took some of the linens and a pair of socks into the den.

"Shoes and socks it is." Heather looked around the room willing herself not to look in the direction of the recliner or the ruggedly handsome wet, half-naked man in it. '_At least he's passed out now_.'

Sean's shoes and socks were not a problem. Stanley however presented a challenge thanks to his big feet, and his tendency to shift out of his blankets, giving Heather a show.

"Promise I won't tell Mimi you peeked."

Startled, Heather dropped one of Stanley's large boots and turned to face her audience, glaring and blushing simultaneously.

"Jake, I hardly think…" His crooked smile glowed white in the dim light and his dark eyes took on the smoky depths of warm brandy. Heather felt her pulse race and her skin grow warmer. The Jake she knew would have looked away by now, but not this one. This Jake did not hesitate to look at her from head to toe. This Jake didn't have shadows in his eyes or barriers for his soul. This Jake wasn't going to look away.

"How far does that blush go?" He may have been the one half naked, but that lazy half-smile made her feel undressed.

"Jake Green, you are plastered…" she stammered.

"Hmff." Jake grunted. "That I am."

"…and you need to get out of those wet things."

"You could help me." Jake's grin and his velvet voice were nothing but suggestive. Heather's eyes widened once again before she resolutely turned away. '_Breathe_.'

"Take them off, Jake." Her command was weak, but it was all she had.

Heather continued with Stanley's, and then Sean's, socks all the while listening to Jake shifting in the recliner with his wet pants. When he stopped she figured he had either succeeded or passed out.

Neither assumption was true. He was watching her again, but now his eyes had lost their mischief, clouding somewhat.

Somewhere in the warm haze of approaching sleep and randy thoughts, Jake's worried mind had grudgingly overridden his alcohol induced abandon. He needed to know…

"You okay?"

Heather didn't answer him at first. She kept picking at the shoe lace of one of Sean's wet sneakers. She knew what he was asking.

"I'm fine. I'm glad it's over. I'm glad he-he's going to pay for what he's done to all of us." Heather pushed down the emotions the subject woke in her before turning away from him to place the wet shoes by the fireplace.

Phillip Constantino was now a chapter in Heathers life she believed she could close. She felt sick in knowing the amount of harm he had caused to so many people she cared about, past and present. Constantino was a reminder of her past long before the bombs; one she wanted to forget. If Jake only knew…. Heather felt herself physically shake.

"Something more…happened to you, didn't it…in New Bern?" His voice was careful, worried. Heather felt her shoulders dip a little. Even drunk, Jake could read her, see through her. But now was not the time.

"Jake, it is late and you are drunk." She sighed. "And you can't fix everything." Jake's eyes were nearly closed now, but they remained focused on her.

"I know," he whispered. "Can't ssstop me from tryin'." She gave him a sad smile that he returned.

"I just–I just need you to be okay…." and then he closed his eyes.

Heather moved to Jake's side and looked down at him. He looked like a sleeping child, this man who had taken her heart and now more and more of her soul. Tentatively, she pushed up the scrunched legs of his jeans before untying his boots then letting it all fall to the floor with a thud. After getting a dry pair of socks on his feet, she tucked his legs back under his quilt and gently pulled the fabric up over his chest. Even in sleep Jake felt her presence; his hand closed over hers before she could take it off his chest, pulling a gasp from Heather.

"I need you to be okay, Heather…" his eyes did not open.

"Jake, shhhh." She soothed.

"I need you."

Heather could not move. She could barely breathe. She left her hand on his chest even as his own fell away, continuing to feel his steady heartbeat under her fingertips. It felt so strong. Finally, she gathered herself and pushed the blanket up the rest of the way. Then she reached up to his forehead and pushed back a wayward lock of hair.

"I need you too." She sighed sadly and turned away.

--

'_Always took a Green man getting piss-drunk to talk about his heart to a gal. Too bad he won't remember…'_

'_He'll remember Dad. Looking at her in the morning, he'll remember.'_

'_Boys look to be getting along now. Good party.'_

'_Yeah Dad, good party.'_

_-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- _

Deputy Jimmy Taylor dropped off the last of his charges, and stopped off at Mary's to tell her Eric's present whereabouts. His condition he'd leave to Eric to tell.

The wind was kicking up tonight--or was it morning? Jimmy wasn't accustomed to the graveyard shifts anymore, but he was happy to take the Sheriff's usual patrol time, just so his boss and friend could recall what a night off felt like. The chicken scratch up on the schedule board in the Sheriff's office didn't do justice to the time Jake spent in the service of his town and its people. A year ago, Jimmy never thought he'd say this, but Jake Green tying one on with the boys and being a little less responsible was well over due.

Jimmy moved his patrol car in and out of the streets around town, never making any pattern or set schedule of where he went during his patrol. Aside from the gusty winds coming out of the southwest, Jericho was silent. The winds didn't escape his attention. Kansas was looking for its first good storm of the season. Reports from Fort Liberty confirmed twister activity in Oklahoma and northern Texas. Kansas patiently awaited the inevitable.

The only consolation this year was that all of the town's emergency shelters were now fully operational, thanks to the Grease Monkey Squad. As well, nearly every home with a basement was prepared. And just two weeks ago Heather had repaired the damage to the town's tornado siren from the mortar fire from New Bern last month. So, thanks to a year-long struggle with man-made disasters, Jericho now had a little extra confidence to deal with the natural ones.

Prepared for the unpredictable or not, Jimmy still wasn't looking forward to putting the newly repaired shelters or the town's newly revised emergency plan to use any time soon. Truth be told, he hated this time of year. A twister had taken his own Dad's life when he was a Kansas State Patrolman back in '79. Jimmy used to feel a twinge in his gut every time a severe storm warning made it across the TV screen. Now, since there was no TV, all it took was heavy clouds and troubled skies to set him on edge.

Making his way out of town, Jimmy parked his cruiser just off Tillman Hill. He could make out a few of the windmill powered street lights in town square as well as a couple of the patrol post fires that sat just below the horizon line in the distance. From his vantage point on the hill, the lights below seemed to want to merge with the night sky above them. The moon and the stars didn't get much competition or company these days. Jimmy gave a contented sigh, his earlier concerns put aside.

"Jimmy, this is Bill, come in."

"What's going on, Bill?" He sensed the tension in his fellow deputy's voice.

"Just got word from Russell Williams in New Bern. He wanted to give Jake a heads-up on some not-so-good news. Couple hours ago, Ex-Mayor Constantino escaped from jail. Set a fire and got some help from a couple sympathizers. New Bern called for military assistance, but they're probably not going to get it for just one prisoner."

"They need us?"

"Negative, said they got it covered. If ya don't remember, New Bern still outnumbers us two to one." Bill paused. Jimmy once again ignored Bill's sarcasm. "Do you think we should tell Jake right now?"

"I just left Jake. They all just got back from Stanley's bachelor party. Jake's not going to be feeling any pain till later this afternoon."

"Understand. What do you suggest till then?"

"Well for right now we need to send word to the patrol posts to stay alert, notify them that New Bern lost a prisoner so they should take extra precautions. I'd leave it up to Jake to say who. I'm going back into town and stay on patrol there."

"Understand, Jimmy. Keep ya posted if we get another call. Out."

Jimmy placed the radio on the car seat and pulled his vehicle into drive. He was heading back to the Greens'.

**TBC**


	11. Chapter 11

**DISCLAIMER: ** Damned if I don't own Jericho or any of it's nice characters. Bummer.

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:** When I started this, I figured I'd use fan fic as therapy to get over the then pending cancellation of our show. With each chapter I write now, I know I'm crawling further and further into AU territory. And I'm pretty certain the new episodes will be nothing like my story. Oh well. Still having fun.

This chapter is summed up in it's title. Some might not be all that happy with my plot twist, but it just seemed to fit into my Jericho world and I went with it. I think it gives Heather and her relationships with others in the story more dimension. And…well…it's good drama.

Sorry it took so long, but I'll have the next chap up soon. On that note I want to give a big thanks to **JT** and **Midnight** for being excellent sounding boards. JT for giving Jimmy his moment with Jake. Midnight for her lovingly OCD editing (my inner smart ass Midnight!) Between the two of you my stuff is getting smoother and smoother. Thanks!

**WARNING: **For language of course and just a smidge of violence you might blink and miss.

**Chapter Eleven: Her Secret**

by Ann Pendragon

Bam….Bam. Bam.

Sheriff Green bolted upright in his makeshift bed, hand reaching for his side-arm, only to find boxers and skin.

"Shit!"

"A little further left, honey. Hold it. Right there."

Bam. Bam. A busy hammer smacked down on what sounded like metal somewhere outside.

"Okay, I'm turning it back on, Gail." It was Heather's voice in Grease Monkey mode.

'_Thank God, not an emergency.'_ He groaned deeply when his body fell back into the recliner, relieved beyond anything else that danger wasn't presently upon them and because the impact killed his head.

Jake threw the quilt back over himself in an effort to stave off the inevitable. His heart slowly resumed its normal rhythm again, only to reveal how heavy the pounding in his head was beginning to be. Sleep wasn't going to come back, no matter how far he hid from the late morning sun. Nor would his bladder get any lighter until he got up and faced his hangover like a man.

Kicking off the covers, he found his way to the washroom beside the kitchen to drain last night's fun from his system. Jake felt like he'd eaten a sweater, then washed it down with the lake, followed by a hit between the eyes for good measure._ 'Didn't think I'd drunk that much.'_

In the kitchen now, Jake placed his head under the sink faucet and allowed its cold flow to soak the back of his neck and scalp. Sucking in some of the water, he tried in vain to quench the desert in his mouth.

The sound of throaty laughter pulled him from his favored hangover treatment. It appeared that Heather and his mom had just finished securing the cables to brace the neighborhood's windmill at the back edge of the Greens property, and now were helping each other get untangled from the extra cable.

Gail was kneeling on the ground, loosening the difficult lengths that had snagged Heather around the legs, while Heather was bent over clutching on to her shoulder so she wouldn't topple. Both women sounded like they were having the time of their life.

Jake mustered a wistful grin. It was good medicine to hear their laughter. Like himself, his mother seemed to smile the most when Heather was near. He would have taken more pleasure out of the moment if his head didn't hurt so damn much.

Jake pulled a towel from the stack of cloths on the table and mopped up the water that had tendrilled down his bare back and chest while he continued to watch the moment.

Gail spotted her son in the kitchen window, his head soaking wet again and looking appropriately miserable. He gave her a little nod before he walked out of sight, pulling a shirt over his head. Gail shook her head and finished pulling at the offending line around Heather.

Her son may have been the last one to get up from the night's adventure; but he was probably the only one of the group close to being fully functional this morning. Gail could only imagine that the other men were back in their own beds by now, fast asleep.

"Okay honey, I think we're free." While Heather finished rolling the cable, Gail stood and stretched. The two of them had been up since Mimi's retrieval mission around 7 a.m. late for Gail, early for Heather.

Mimi had literally herded her fiancé and Sean into the pickup; guiding the comatose pair while chatting loudly and happily to Gail and Heather about her bachelorette party that evening and thanking the two for their help with the wedding. Bonnie had wisely opted this morning to stay at the farm with a work crew to finish the changes to the north field. She had already had the "pleasure" of participating in the drunk Stanley show in the past.

When Mary came shortly after, to pull a green looking Green from the families den, apologies and thank you's had filled the air. Gail reminded her that Eric wasn't the first Green man she had to clean up after. At that moment Eric took the opportunity to belch.

Out of the corner of her eye, Gail caught sight of Jimmy's patrol car making yet another lap around their neighborhood. This made it the fifth time he'd driven past the Green house since the woman came outside to work. She was certain; he'd been hanging around since very early this morning. The realization was giving her no comfort. She felt her gut twitch when Jimmy finally pulled up into the drive.

"Heather, I'm going to go see what Jimmy needs and check on Jake."

"Sure, Gail." Heather had also noticed the deputy's unusually repetitive patrol route this morning. She watched Gail meet with Jimmy at the back porch step, and then enter the house, engrossed in conversation.

'_Sheriff's job is never done…'_ Well, neither was hers. This wasn't the only windmill on her list, but she'd wanted it to be the first. She was kinda partial to one of the homes it powered and the people in it.

Heather wiped the sweat from her brow and peered up at her work, the long steel blades reflecting the late morning sun with each rotation. It was one of her greatest accomplishment so far. It also represented the most complicated chapter in her life.

Mornings she would look out her bedroom window and watch the windmill blades at work. To her, the windmills represented a promise kept to people she cared about; but also an opportunity cruelly taken advantage of by a man she could not stand. The windmills helped secure her place in Jericho's community today, while never letting her forget the past and how much of it she was forced to learn during her time back in New Bern. If she had never returned to her old hometown, she may never have had to deal with truths better left unknown. Then again, Jericho never would have been shown the light.

Her tools and the cable packed, Heather was halfway across the lawn before she heard the raised voices in the house.

"Why in the _HELL_ wasn't I notified?"

Back in the Green residence…

Jake's blood shot eye's bore down on his deputy, demanding an answer. To his surprise, his mother didn't seem startled by the bad news. Intercepting the glance shared between them, Jake deduced that the deputy had already shared the news with her before coming to him. Possibly to cushion the blow for his beloved ex-Mayor's wife; and probably to gain an ally before coming to Jake with the one thing he did not want to hear on this day. Phillip Constantino had escaped the day before his execution.

"Honey…" Gail needed her son to calm down and Jericho's Sheriff to think. Jake might be a relatively mellow—perhaps slightly obnoxious drunk—but he was hell with a hangover.

"Jake." Jimmy followed suit. "You were passed out drunk when the news came in. And even if you hadn't been, what could you have done? We secured the town, Jake. New Bern has every able bodied citizen tracking Constantino to all four winds. And we've been keeping in contact with Russell for updates."

"Jake..." Jimmy rubbed his hand against the back of his neck, exhausted and frustrated. "We did exactly what you would have done except go flying off the handle... personally I was willing to wait for that part."

Gail had to give Jimmy credit. He was holding his own with her son on this morning of all mornings. Then again, sleep deprivation did dull most men's need for self preservation.

"Honey, it was your evening off. You finally had a night to just be yourself, to be Stanley's best man. And your people did their jobs."

"Mom…"

"Jake, we were protected." Gail pleaded and then looked over to the tired deputy. "I'm fairly certain that a specific patrol car has been circling our house most of the night."

Jake looked from his mom to Jimmy. Recognition softening his features, but not lessening his concern.

"I'm sorry, Jim. I just…"

"It's okay, Jake. My family and this town mean that much to me too. And in that order." Jake placed a hand on his friend's shoulder and squeezed; both men sharing the moment of understanding.

Jake jumped at the familiar clank of a tool bag hitting the wood of the living room floor behind him and turned.

"Heather honey, we've received some news from New Bern…" Gail started, but Jake could see Heather already knew. The tension in her face told him just how long she had been standing there.

"They haven't found him yet?" Her question fell to Jake, as did her anxious blue eyes. He stalled his answer, not wanting to tell her.

"Jake." Now a demand.

"No. Not yet." Heather's eyes cast down to the floor. Jake could see her physically steeling herself. She was tucking away her own personal fear, that thing he knew she hid, trying to be strong. Jake felt like he was looking in a mirror.

'_Yea, I should have killed the son-of-a-bitch.'_ The need had never been so visceral.

"Jericho. This is New Bern."

Jake had the radio off of Jimmy's belt before the deputy could twitch.

"Russell. This is Jake. Give me good news."

"You've been apprised of the situation?" It seemed even Russell was stalling on giving answers.

"Yes. Has Constantino been found?"

"Negative, Jake." Jake pinched his fingers to his nose and leaned against the arm of the couch. The urge to throw up had nothing to do with his hangover.

"How did this happen, Russell? You had him…"

"The bastard had help, Jake. The last two people who would listen to him were assigned as his guards last night. We caught one and he's been dealt with. And we've doubled our search between here and Jericho…" Jake could almost hear Russell taking a deep breath. He could sense that the other man had more to say and was hesitating in saying it.

"Russell?"

"Is Heather there?" Jake looked up from the radio to Heather.

"I-I'm here, Russell." Heather looked up to the radio, but not Jake.

"She's here." Jake repeated over the opened channel. "What's this have to do with Heather?" His apprehension grew when Heather looked back to the floor.

"Heather, you need to tell them if you haven't already. If Constantino isn't running for the border, he's coming for you. Call it gut, but he has business with both of you." Heather's panicked eyes raced to meet Jakes, filling him with complete dread.

"She's going to tell us now. Keep me posted. Out." Jake slowly lowered the radio, never looking away from Heather.

"I'll be outside Jake." Jimmy quickly left out the front door, unnoticed by the three people in the room.

Gail looked to Heather and then to her son. The tension was tangible.

"What happened, Honey? You can tell us." Gail stepped towards Heather and was surprised when she backed away from her comfort. _'What happened to my girl?'_

Jake put his hand up to his mother and moved cautiously towards Heather as if she was a wounded animal. She stayed, but would not look him in the eye.

What could hurt her so much? How could he help her if she didn't tell him? And then he remembered last night. He **did** remember last night and the words she'd said just before sleep carried him away.

'_You can't fix everything…'_

"Heather, what did he do to you?"

The emotion he expressed, along with his question was almost too much for her to bare. She raised now tear-filled eyes to search his wide compassionate ones. _'How will he look at me after he knows?'_

"Heather, you need to trust us like we trust you." Jake was startled by the tear-shaken laugh elicited by his words.

"Trust? I've broken that trust. You've welcomed me into your home, your family…" Heather now looked to both of them. "I don't deserve your trust."

"Oh Honey…" Gail cried. "Please, just tell us."

Heather closed her eyes and breathed in the sob she didn't want to escape. She slid down to the piano bench by the kitchen, looked to the two people she cared about the most—the two people she could hurt the most—and began.

"It was the day after I found the mortar production line and the map that butchered and pieced out Jericho for its resources." Jake could not help how chilled it made him feel to hear the uncharacteristic bitterness in her voice. This was not the Heather he knew.

"By then I knew how much New Bern hated Jericho, how much Constantino had made them hate Jericho. I knew what he planned and I couldn't let him do that to either town." Heather looked to both of them and then to her hands in her lap, twisting at them. Jake and Gail remained silent.

"So when Constantino ordered Russell to 'invite' me to his home I thought he had found me out" Heather continued to twist her hands. "You see, earlier that day I had sabotaged my first line of machines in the plant. The lines had been shut down temporarily for repairs. When the crew left for break, I tinkered with the machines so they would bind up and stop later in the day. I wasn't aiming to hurt anyone, just foul up the machines till I could think of another way to stop New Bern or get help."

_ooooooooooooooooooooo_

"_I'm so glad to hear how well the windmills are coming along. Remember, not only are you bringing light and energy to both New Bern and Jericho with those machines, but also food back to New Bern."_

"_Thank you." Heather smiled nervously at Mayor Constantino. _'So far, so good.'_ She kept repeating the words, using them to keep her focused until she and Russell were dismissed._

"_I do hope nothing will come in the way of that. Don't you?"_

_Constantino's cold eyes studied her for a reaction while his false smile attempted to keep up the last remnants of his charade. Heather could honestly say she was afraid, but she did not look away. Her grown dislike of the man would not let her. _

"_Russell, be a good man and load the boxes in the hall into your truck. When the two of you leave, I want you to take them to the factory. It's late, but it seems the maintenance crew had some difficulty today with one of the lines. Somehow, some parts went missing and that could have caused a lot of damage. Fortunately, one of the men had gone back to double-check the line. Those replacement parts should help get things running smoothly again." Constantino's eyes remained leveled with Heather's, they now took on the sharp glittering light of diamonds. _

'_Oh God, he knows! _

"_Yes sir." Russell nodded to Constantino and gave a quick glance to Heather. If Russell had hesitated to leave her alone with his Mayor, his boss had not bothered to pick it up, but Heather did. She had figured for a while now, Russell's mistrust of his leader._

_Once Russell had left, Constantino turned away from Heather and walked to a cabinet by the parlor window. He opened the door and pulled out a half-empty bottle of whiskey. _

"_You see Jericho as your home now." It wasn't a question. Constantino continued to leisurely fix himself a drink, his back to Heather. He made it clear she was no threat to him. "You said before you had carved out a nice little life for yourself. At least before the bombs…"_

_The first week she had been back to New Bern, the Mayor had made it a point to speak with Heather as often as he could about her life in Jericho, often finding his way to the factory or inviting her to town hall. Heather felt it odd that a man she barely knew was so interested in her life. Quickly enough, she realized it was Jericho that had his interest. He'd started with benign questions about the going-ons of Jericho's gossip. By the end of his questioning, he'd progressed to things of more import, like how Jericho's resources were holding up and law enforcement issues. _

_At that time Heather had no idea what New Bern had planned, just that Mayor Constantino made her uneasy, as did his questions. After a few visits with Heather and her vague, but polite answers, she knew the Mayor had realized very keenly where her loyalties now lay. _

"_New Bern, at least what's left of it, will always be my birthplace." Heather noticed the Mayor's back tense. "But Jericho has become my home."_

"_May I remind you, Ms. Lisinski that your birthplace is in the state it is because of your new home." She chose to silently disagree with the Mayor's accusation. It was her belief that the man in front of her had done more damage than two Ravenwood armies. She watched him take a drink, his back still turned. Her anger was slowly outweighing her fear._

"_Suffice to say they seem to think of you well there. Russell had mentioned you had been traveling with Johnston Green and his oldest son… Jake is it?... when he met you in Black Jack." Constantino now faced her, his eyes once again clinically studying hers. She knew she had reacted when she heard Jake's name. Constantino's eyes now smiled._

"_Good family, the Greens. It seems you have a knack for coming into good families." _

"_I don't understand…" she said. The Mayor smiled._

"_Well, your family, of course. Daughter of the beloved late Reverend Michael Lisinski and his also late wife, Susan. She died in a car accident didn't she, when you were just a girl? And your father died of cancer just a few years ago, if I'm correct?" Heather felt the fear returning again. This unexpected trip down memory lane made no sense to her, but she knew enough that it wasn't good._

"_I knew her, you know. Your mother. I'd been meaning to tell you that little bit of trivia. I figure your mother probably didn't have the chance to say and your father…well he wasn't all that fond of me. After all, I did 'date' his wife just before they married." The look in Constantino's eyes made Heathers blood run cold _

"_She was beautiful, much like you are, and just as naive. Only difference I can see are your eyes. Must have gotten those blue eyes from your father." _

_His cruel smile broadened while he watched the horror of recognition bloom in the one feature he shared with the young woman before him. "My mistake. I have forgotten that the Reverend had brown eyes."_

_ooooooooooooo_

"A few years after Mom died, Dad told me he'd married her knowing I wasn't his. He said it didn't matter, that God had given him a gift in the both of us." Heather felt her words choke. "He told me about the ra-rape, and how my mother had sworn him to secrecy. He loved her so much he would have done anything for her."

Heather blinked her eyes and allowed the pooled tears to fall while the individuals in the room struggled to digest the bitter information. Heather cleared her throat and went on.

"Shortly after he sent Russell and me away, and by the time I was done crying and blabbering in the truck, Russell had figured out some of what had occurred. He told me he would keep my secret and would help me escape, but he couldn't help me do any more damage to the factory. It was too risky for him and his people's own plans to take down Constantino."

"Phillip Constantino." Heather began to shake her head and closed her eyes. "That man had known all along that I was his…." Heather spat in disgust. She could not even say the word. "It was the last thing he said to me that night. He knew I wouldn't want anyone to know. I think he figured it was all he needed to say to get me to 'behave' like a good little naïve girl. I don't think he would have told me his 'little bit of trivia' if it hadn't served a purpose for him."

Heather wiped at her face and continued.

"The next day came, but I didn't take Russell up on his offer to get out of town. I needed to stop Constantino. By then, Eric had also found out about New Bern's plans and confronted me about them. I told him it was too dangerous for him to get involved; that he needed to stay quiet and get back with the rest to Jericho and warn all of you." Heather looked to Gail and could only see tears. She needed Gail to understand she'd never planned to let Eric step in harm's way. Hesitantly, she looked to Jake and found him unreadable.

"That night I snuck into the factory. This time I was going to blow up the mortar production line. Just as I was finishing, Eric found me. He must have snuck out of the house the guys were bunking at. He told me he'd be damned if he let me go it alone, so I let him help me. After the explosion we ran and Eric was caught." She looked to the Greens again.

"I couldn't get to him. By then Constantino knew his little girl was responsible for destroying half of his production line, and Russell was trying to keep me in hiding." Heather balled her hands into small fists.

"So for the next couple of days I hid. Until I was found by one of the Sheriffs deputies…"

_ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo_

"_I thought we had this worked out, Ms. Lisinski. You would be good and continue to make my windmills, and I would keep you safe so you can continue to do so. How can I protect you when you resort to such treacherous behavior?" Heather watched Mayor Constantino walk the length of the room, stopping within inches of her face. She held his steely gaze with her own. "You could be very dead right now."_

_Up till this point Heather had been handcuffed to the table in the jail's interrogation room for the past three hours. Constantino had simply come in to bid his 'daughter' goodbye before sending her to her sentence._

"_Now you've given me no choice." Constantino looked at Heather one last time before calling for the guard. The burly man reached for her bound hands and uncuffed them from the table, pulling them tight when she resisted, and then yanked her to her feet._

"_Take her to the Hyatt road blockade. Some friends of mine will be there to collect her. Goodbye, Ms. Lisinski."_

_Heather felt fear course through her body and panic fill her stomach with ice. She had a pretty good idea what she was being collected for._

"_Nooooo." She screamed while New Bern's Mayor continued to walk away._

_oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo_

Jake and his mother had kept their silence while Heather told her story. Jake had not moved a muscle during that time; hadn't trusted himself to speak. Each word that came from her had drained him emotionally. He felt every moment, every injustice. His gut churned when she gave them her secret, and with much difficulty he felt her disgust and shame. After the last bit of the story Jake felt his fingers dig into his palm and draw blood, but his mother was the one to speak.

"How-how did you get away?"

The concern in Gail's voice started more silent tears for Heather. She could not look at either of them. She needed to finish the last of her story.

"I was handed over to two men in a blue van. They were dressed like anyone else, but their hair was cut short and they wore combat boots. After they threw me in a large animal cage in the back, they started to talk to each other like I wasn't even there. I was just cargo for them. All I could do was listen and try to think of a way to escape."

"No more than twenty minutes out of New Bern the van swerved and stopped and then the shots rung out…"

_ooooooooooooooooooooooooooo_

_If she had not already been on the floor, she would have been there now. The men driving the van were slumped over in their seats, the windshield cracked and sprayed with their blood. Heather let out a shriek when the side door came open and she was pulled from the cage._

"_Heather…"_

"_Russell?"_

_oooooooooooooooooooooooooooo_

"Russell had just returned from Jericho and heard through his sources what had happened to me. Said all hell was breaking loose in New Bern and Constantino was readying his men to attack Jericho. That you-you had come for Eric, and Robert Hawkins and your dad had helped you escape. He wanted me to head back to Jericho, but then I realized what I needed to do…"

oooooooooooooooooooooooooo

"_Russell. These men were from Ravenwood."_

"_What are you talking about? Heather you need to go…"_

"_Russell! They said so themselves while they were driving. The other guy was reminding the driver of some deal they had with Constantino, and to be careful not to get to close to the Nebraska border. Said Camp Liberty was too close to Rt 37."_

_Russell moved to one of the dead men and pulled at his jacket to reveal a bullet proof vest and dog tags._

"_Son-of-a-bitch. He did help Ravenwood." Russell ripped the tags from the corpses neck and squeezed them in his fist. Heather didn't let her mind stay on that subject for long. Something more urgent occurred to her._

"_Camp Liberty! If they didn't want to go near it then it must be the good guys. Russell, if Constantino is gathering his men, Jericho doesn't have much time. I need to stop this."_

_Russell's mind was still swimming with the evidence he finally had. They could use Ravenwood to put the nails into Constantino's coffin. Returning his attention back to Heather he could not help but see the determination in her eyes. He'd known for a while now what Heather had left behind in Jericho when she stepped up into his truck cab outside of Black Jack so many weeks ago. He had a pretty good idea what she was, or who she was needing to save. He could not stop her only help._

"_Go."_

_Russell had the other truck of people who came with him take Heather north, toward the state border in search of help. Unfortunately, they were found by more Ravenwood men. The mercenaries forced Heather's driver off the road, then stripped the truck of everything, leaving them all for dead._

_ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo_

"You know the rest. How the Army found me, and what happened afterwards. How this week Russell and the people of New Bern took their sadistic and warped leader, my biological father, out of power, but not before he did so much harm to so many people." Heather's voice sounded numb, tired. "And now you know why that man may be coming here to Jericho, instead of running for his freedom. Why I can't stay."

She stood rigidly from the bench and moved quickly to recover her tool bag from the living room floor. She could feel Jake's eyes follow her and tightened her resolve in defense. She refused to be another damsel in distress for Jake to rescue. Some brave act wasn't going to rewrite history. What was done was done.

"You're not him, Heather. You could never be him." Jake tried to keep his voice steady, but could not stop the waver. Heather finally turned to him, her eyes already heavy with self-loathing.

"My blood killed your father…" she turned to Gail, "…and your husband…and then tried to destroy your home. When you look at me will you be able to forget that or how I chose to keep that knowledge from you? Will you?" Her voiced raised, even startling herself.

Jake hesitated while Gail fought to control her tears. Jake didn't feel like the question was fair. If she had waited for him to answer, he would have told her he only saw her. But his hesitation cost him. Heather pulled her arms closer to her body and moved quickly to the front door. Before opening it, she stopped without turning back to the Greens.

"I'll get Jimmy to drop me off at Bailey's if he's still out there. I promised Mimi I'd finish with the lights for tomorrow's reception." She paused. "I'll have my stuff out by tonight."

And then she was gone.

TBC

And now commence throwing things at screen…


	12. Chapter 12

**DISCLAIMER: ** Damned if I don't own Jericho or any of its nice characters. But the story line is mine.

**AUTHORS NOTE: **Now I'm starting to think I like torturing these character's (and the readers) Kidding. Maybe? Due to the readers input, I'm getting Jake's head out of his six so he can confront Heather. (About time!) Just remember I warned ya about the "torture" part…

This chap continues right from the last Chapter Eleven and there is a small reference to Chapter Seven: Ghosts. And once again a BIG THANKS to **JT and Midnight** for their patience and help. It is very much appreciated. And **dponice, **I liked the amoral son-of-a-bitch tag for Constantino so I used it.

**WARNING:** Some language and another TBC to leave ya hanging.

**Chapter Twelve: Preparations**

by Ann Pendragon

By the time Gail made it to the door, Heather had gotten into Jimmy's car and they were driving away.

"This wasn't her fault." Gail cried as she turned back to her son. "I understand why she didn't tell us, but how could she think we would judge her by what that man has done?"

Jake had no comfort for his mother at that moment. He still stood wide eyed, looking to the spot where Heather had been only a moment ago, his heart hurting.

"Ahhhhhhhhhh." Jake had snapped out of his grim reverie and slammed his fist into the wall with a feral cry.

"Jake…" Gail placed her hand on her son's arm. She could feel him shaking from the adrenaline and anger coursing through his body. "Jake, we have to talk to her…"

He remained in silence, his mind and heart presently embroiled in a battle of wills. He wanted to kill that amoral son-of-a-bitch for everything he has done. He wanted to find Heather, hold her and tell her none of this was her fault. He wanted to protect her, all of them…

'_I need to keep them safe.' _

Grudgingly, his mind won. "Are you at the clinic today?"

"What?"

"Mom, are you at the clinic today?" Gail heard the Sheriff speaking, not her son.

"Yes. And then back here this evening with the girls. They need to finish some wedding preparations before they head to Bailey's for Mimi's party."

"Get your things, Mom. Make sure all the doors and windows are locked. I'll drive you to the clinic. And you are to stay at the clinic…"

"Jake…What about Heather?" His mother's first instinct might be to track down Heather, but he needed to know his mom was safe for the day.

"Stay at the clinic, Mom. I'll post a guard in the building for the rest of the day. I'll do the same for Heather and Eric. Mary will be tending bar all day, so she'll be visible enough. When your shift's over, I'll drive you and Heather home. And I'll see if Eric and Mary want to stay here tonight, just to be safe." Gail quietly nodded her head in agreement.

"Jake, we need to talk to her."

"We will. Right now I'm more concerned about protecting all of you and this town." Jake pleaded. "Please, Mom, go get ready. I still need to talk to Eric, and notify Gray. Then I have to talk to Stanley about the wedding…"

"You're not canceling their wedding because of this man?" Jake closed his eyes and began to massage his hand.

"I don't know, Mom. But I need to give them the information and the option."

Gail touched her son's shoulder and felt the weight on it. The same weight she used to feel on his father's those many years. "We'll get through this." She squeezed his arm and left to do as he asked.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Once Jimmy dropped Heather off at Bailey's, she had made a bee line for the ladies' room to lock herself inside, nearly knocking over Mary along the way.

Knock. Knock. Knock. "Heather?"

"I'm okay. I just-I just…" Who was she kidding? She was hiding in the ladies' room at Bailey's, crying her eyes out. When had she become such a…a girl?

"Heather, please unlock the door. Mrs. Thomas is working with me today and she's nearly seven months pregnant. I could get her to use the men's…"

The slide lock popped as the door fell open to reveal a very forlorn young woman. This wasn't the first time Mary had coaxed someone out of the ladies room, and probably wouldn't be the last. A piece of her cherished the normalcy of the situation.

Mary had worked in a bar most of her adult life. She had seen people's celebrations and their average days, but also…well, their worst days more often than not. She never judged, nor did she ask questions when explanations weren't given, and only gave advice when asked. But she always listened.

"Wanna talk about it?" Mary wasn't surprised when Heather shook her head.

"I-I just needed a minute…"

"Well, living at the Green house…" That didn't get the smile or laugh Mary thought she would get. Heather looked close to tears again.

She had been under the impression that Heather's living arrangement with the Greens was a happy one. Although Mary's own relationship with the family had been slowly warming, she couldn't help feeling a little bit jealous of the closeness Heather and the family's matriarch shared. But it wasn't enough jealousy to create ill will.

Heather had continued to be a good friend to her when others turned up their noses this past year. Mary understood why the town saw her the way they did and her logical side didn't blame them. But the side of her that loved didn't care. She loved Eric more than anyone she had ever known; and even though some would argue, Mary cared about the Greens.

Having Heather in their lives had been good for them, good for Jake. At least that was now the consensus of the town. Ask anyone who ventured into the bar, most of the town believed that Heather Lisinski's stay with the Greens was to be a permanent one.

Mary placed her arm gently on Heather's shoulder and gave her a small grin. "If I know anything about the Greens, it's that they're a stubborn lot, especially when it comes to those they care about. Whatever happened, it'll work out. Just have faith."

Heather gave Mary a brief smile, more for her not asking questions than her words. The words she wasn't willing to put any faith in.

"Thanks. I- I better get going. Gotta get those lights up for tomorrow's reception." Heather's attempt at 'peppy' was weak, to say the least, but Mary rewarded the woman with a broad grin.

"Come in for break. I have some lunch with your name on it."

"Dry noodles and sprouts?" Heather ventured.

"Dry noodles and sprouts." Mary smiled. "What else?"

Mary watched Heather walk out the door and sighed. The Greens were not only stubborn; they attracted stubborn.

"Tina, I'll be back." Mary walked up the back steps to check on Eric.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Shortly after dropping off his mother at the clinic and calling up a guard for the building, Jake went in search of Heather and Jimmy. Pulling the Roadrunner up alongside Town Hall, he spotted Jimmy leaning against his car's hood near Baileys, watching the activity in the square.

Several folks had volunteered their time to help Heather string lights around the bar for the wedding festivities tomorrow evening. She had charmed her volunteers into the task telling them it would count as a wedding gift for the couple. Jake firmly believed her smile alone could have gotten most to say yes. Even now, she didn't see how much of an effect she had on others. Jake's eyes became glassy when he spotted Heather out in the square._ 'Heather.' _

"Jake?"

Jake pulled himself out of his wandering thought. There was work to be done.

"Jimmy." Jake walked up beside the deputy as he got off the front bumper of his car. He could tell the man was tired.

"Hey, Boss. I figured I'd stick around till you came…"

"Thanks," Jake let the "Boss" part slide; just grateful Jimmy had the foresight to stay with Heather. He had come to realize Jimmy was a little quicker on the uptake than most gave him credit for. Looking out over the square, Jake spotted Heather among the volunteers. Aside from her usual cheerful smile being replaced by a faint copy when others spoke to her, she was working with her usual fervor to get her task complete.

'_She should be working inside today.'_ Jake's eyes began to slide from building to building around the square with a trained eye, almost missing Jimmy's next words.

"Jake, what's this about her moving out? She was real upset on the way into town, asking about places to stay."

Jake momentarily faltered in his Sheriff persona.

"Never mind that." _Can't think about that now._ "I'm going to need you to stay out here with her a little while longer till I can get back here. Do not let her leave your sight." Jimmy understood.

"I need you to call Joe. Tell him to get Bill out of bed and to tell Bill I don't care if he just got off work a few hours ago. I need him to go to the Richmond farm for Stanley. He's probably still sleeping off last night, but I can't raise anyone on his radio." This would not be the first time Stanley had misplaced, or didn't charge, his radio.

"Then call each of our guard posts. Let them know who we're keeping an eye for, and that he may be traveling with another man. Order them not to spread the news. They need to be informed, but Jericho doesn't need the upset, although I know it will get around soon enough. I'm heading to my brother's place, and then I'll find Gray. After that, I'll get an update from New Bern. And Jimmy…"

"Yeah, Jake?"

"As soon as I get back to you, go home."

"Jake?"

"You're going to bed. You earned it. Just be back at the office by five and in contact with me by four-forty five."

"Thanks, Jake." He could hear the smile in his deputy's voice. "They'll get him, Jake. He'd be stupid to try and come here."

"Hope you're right, Jimmy. Hope your right."

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Eric handled the news best as could be expected while suffering a record-breaking hangover. When Jake went up to Mary's apartment above the bar to find Eric all he had to do was follow the smell of stale vomit. Once found, he had to drag his brother out from under four quilts and then threaten to throw water on him. But sobriety came quick enough after he gave him the bad news.

"When did you find out?"

Jake saw where the conversation was going and cut him off. "Less than an hour ago. Jimmy took care of things through the early morning 'til I was sober enough."

Eric nodded his head painfully. Eric vaguely remembered last night. What he did remember seemed to sit well with him when he looked to his brother now.

"Did we get into a fist fight last night?"

Jake gave a smirk and shook his head. "You're still standing, aren't you?"

Eric shook his head and smiled. "Good point."

Before Jake left, he remembered what Heather said about Eric back in New Bern.

"Hey, Eric. Heather told Mom and me about what happened in New Bern. Thanks for trying to watch after her."

Eric looked at his brother, puzzled. How much bonding did they do last night?

"She had been pretty stubborn, but pretty damn brave..." Eric watched Jake nod his head in agreement. "…just like someone else I know."

Jake pushed the sentiment away quickly and told Eric he was going to need him at town hall within the hour. Eric was going to be in charge of baby-sitting Gray after Jake updated the Mayor about the turn of events. If the citizens of Jericho panicked, it would probably start with their Mayor, and Jake needed to head that one off at the pass.

Jake wasn't disappointed…

"Jake, you said this thing with Constantino was handled. What do I tell the town? Justice had slippery fingers and we now have a madman back among us?" Jake felt his inner smart-ass struggling not to surface while Gray assigned blame and squawked about matters he had no understanding or control over. _'Our madman sits in your office chair.'_

"Jake. As Sheriff…"

Jake quickly placed himself closer to Gray than either of them enjoyed. Even now, Jake's head could split open from the night before; compounded by the million thoughts, all bad, marching around in his head. He had no compunction about sharing some of that pain with Gray.

"That madman has no army anymore, and the army he did have is now hunting him down." Jake's eyes traveled over Gray's uncomfortable features. "Jericho has been secured to the best of our ability. If anyone asks you, you will tell them only that much. Are we clear?" Jake found himself nodding his head until Gray mimicked the action.

"Good. I'll contact you if I hear anything." Jake was out of the office and down the hall into the Sheriffs office before Gray could get out a syllable.

"Sheriff!"

Jake inwardly groaned. _'What now?'_

"Yeah, Sara. Bill in the office yet?"

"No and we got a weather update from Fort Liberty. We're looking at a large front making its way out over the Rockies, possible storm warnings by late tomorrow evening. Chance it might blow over into Oklahoma, but I thought you might like the update." He didn't.

'_And now Mother Nature's having her say?'_

"Thanks Sara. Post the information on the public board. And it's Jake. Call me Jake." "The Sheriff" rubbed a hand against his jaw as he emerged from the building.

'_Day just gets better and better.' _Jake found his way out of Town Hall and looked to the sky. It had the audacity to be sunny and clear. Jake just shook his head and headed off to his next task.

Within the hour all who needed to be informed about New Bern's jail break were in the loop. Jake had also doubled the perimeter patrols and overlapped their routes outside the city limits. Some of his people voiced his own wish to go hunting for New Bern's ex-Mayor. It took every bit of his self-control not to let them, or himself, the pleasure. Home was where they were needed.

As fate would have it, the day actually did get a little better. Shortly after Jake left Town Hall, Mimi and Stanley caught up with him.

"Both of you know?" Jake nodded to Mimi and then looked to his friend.

"Yeah, I kinda figured it wasn't good news when you sent Bill out to raise me from my Godzilla-sized hangover."

"Yeah, well, next time remember your radio. You need to be able to stay in contact with town, Stanley."

"Yes, Dad."

Jake just raised his brow. How Stanley always managed to be funny, even with a hangover, was beyond him.

"Jake, we've decided that we're still holding the wedding." Looking to Mimi, Jake saw the woman's determination and was not surprised. His friend had found one feisty woman. "We're not going to let one nasty little man ruin what we—what all of us have been planning for."

Jake smiled at his best friend's girl. "I figured you'd say that, Mimi, and 'for' Stanley. I guess someone needs to wear the pants." Jake raised his brow at Stanley, driving home the reference to last night's adventure.

"Hey. Watch it, best man." Stanley grinned at the joke on him and looked down to the beautiful woman who was to be his bride. "She looks better in them anyways."

Jake smiled when Mimi gave her fiancé a playful swat and Stanley pulled her to his side. Something in Jake ached as he watched the loving back and forth between the couple.

"Jake?"

"Yeah, Mimi?"

"What _did_ happen to all of Stanley's clothes last night?"

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

When Jake finally relieved Jimmy it was noon and Heather was working full tilt in the square with her crew. Trying not to be too obvious a guard, Jake offered to help with the lights so he could stay near her. This wasn't a maneuver foreign to him. He'd consciously and unconsciously been helping her around town to keep her in his sight and safe since her return from New Bern, only now he knew what or who he was keeping her safe from.

He figured she knew why he stayed around to help. And he wasn't all that surprised when she did everything in her power not to get too close to him through the rest of the day. So he gave her her space for now. She **was** going to talk to him. Even if at the end of the day he had to barricade her in the house, she wasn't going to be leaving their home.

'_Their home?'_

By the end of the day, Bailey's and the square was teaming with lights and no new news had come from New Bern. Jake leaned against the WWI memorial watching Heather and her crew clean up.

"Hey, Jake." Jake pulled his attention from Heather and found Jimmy at his side.

"Jimmy, why aren't you with my mom?" Jimmy looked even more tired than he had before his rest at home and he had only been back on shift a little less than an hour. Jake had asked him to relieve the guard at the clinic, not realizing how Gail had enhanced her bodyguard's duties with volunteer work.

"I am." Jimmy pointed out over the square to a swiftly moving Gail Green, on a direct course to where Heather was still cleaning up. Jake recognized what his mother was about to do. He'd been on the receiving end too many times not to know when his mom was about to reprimand one of her family members because she loved them and because they deserved it.

"She said you'd be out this way anyway and she needed to see Heather. Something about not letting one more person getting taken from her?"

By this time his mother had engaged her target and had her by the arm. She wasn't giving Heather the chance to speak or walk away. Jake could not make out the words his mother said, but he could see their effect on both women. Even at a distance, Jake could make out the equal parts stubborn and hurt flashing across both women's faces. Heather had begun to struggle in his mother's grip, but stopped when the older woman spoke again.

After a full five minutes, not a record by a long shot, Gail's determined flood of words ceased as Heather bowed her head and allowed herself to be pulled into the older woman's arms. They cried and Jake felt a huge wave of relief and gratitude for his mother's successful gambit. Jimmy shuffled his feet uncomfortably beside him.

When Gail took Heather by the shoulders and steered her into Bailey's, Jimmy offered his opinion on the situation. "You know, whatever it was, I didn't think Heather was going anywhere."

Jake nodded his head gently. _'Not going anywhere.'_

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

When his mother got Heather to agree to come home with them, it was only a physical act in Jake's estimation. The woman who sat in the backseat of his Roadrunner couldn't have looked more far away. He watched her in the rearview now, as he turned onto their street. He could feel the weight she carried, because he carried it with her. He could see the guilt she was determined not to let go of, strangling her while she sat in silence behind him. He recognized what he saw, because he saw it in himself. _'Takes one to know one.'_

What he would not give to have her look up and meet his gaze in the mirror. Give him that smile he had come to depend on. He needed it now to calm the torrent of worry in his head and heart. Sadly enough, the one person that could calm him was now part of the reason why he felt the way he did.

Once home, Jake unlocked the front door and walked in first, armed, checking each room as he covered the first floor and then the second. Gail and Heather patiently waited in the dark of the downstairs hall, hearing his footfall above them before he came back down the stairs.

"Mom, we're leaving on the outside lights tonight…"

"Lamps and candles inside?" Gail finished for her son.

"Yeah. And draw the curtains closed. Could you do that for me? I need to walk the property. I'll be back."

Heather passed between them at the staircase, giving Gail a polite nod before going up the steps. The meaningful look his mother gave him did not escape Jake's notice as he watched Heather ascend.

"Just hurry back, Jake. Okay?" Jake nodded and walked to the door.

"Lock the door, Mom. I have my key."

Jake's first lap around the house and property was for security's sake. The second time was to be double sure. The third was to be absolutely positive, but that sounded like a thin excuse, even to him. Jake abruptly stopped during the fourth lap. Tilting his head back, he closed his eyes.

'_This is ridiculous!' _He scolded himself. With a deep breath, Jake changed his course for the house and jumped up the back porch steps in two leaps and unlocked the door…

"Heather, we need to talk."

Heather had just come around the corner from the living room with the bundle of blankets from the night before. She had been getting the house ready for Mimi and the girls while Gail got ready upstairs. Neither the look of initial surprise and growing panic in her wide eyes, nor her silence deterred him as he stepped closer to her.

"Heather…" She quickly backpedaled out of the doorway into the living room. "Heather, stop running!" his voice boomed.

Heather jumped, but she did not stop moving. "I can't, Jake. Not now." Her voice shook. "I just can't."

She wasn't fast enough to get up the stairs. Jake had her by the arm, pulling her to him, before she could breathe; only the blankets in her arms separating them.

"Jake. Please…" She pleaded, closing her eyes and his access to them. It killed him to hurt her like this, but he couldn't stop now. She needed to understand, needed to see…

"The person I know doesn't run away when things get tough…she's not a coward." He heard the sob that escaped her and could feel her weight grow heavier against him as he repeated the words she had used against him over a week ago. Some of the blankets in her arms had slipped to the floor, allowing him to draw her closer. She opened her eyes to him, no longer strong enough to hide. He had her entangled now, not only in his arms but in the intensity of his stare.

"I know about running, Heather, and I know about secrets. I know what they do to you when you keep them. They tire you, drag your heart down and make you think the worst of yourself. Soon, keeping the secret becomes more painful than the thing you did." He held her tight, hoping beyond all hope his heartfelt words penetrated the walls she had placed around herself. He wasn't going to let her make the same mistakes he had made. He wasn't going to let guilt damage her like it had him.

"You didn't do any of this, Heather. _He_ did. You didn't kill my dad or start a war. When you were given the choice to back down or fight, you chose to keep fighting. You saved us…you save me…" Heather began to cry, while her head shook.

"You make me—you make this town stronger, make us wish bigger than what we have a right too. You're more than your DNA, Heather…" His deep eyes pleaded with her, trying to communicate what his heart needed to say.

"Jake…" she sobbed weakly. They were so close now it was paralyzing.

"You are more to me…"

The rapping on the door rang out like a gun shot, making both of them lose a heart beat.

"Anyone in there? These dresses are getting heavy." Mimi's voice resonated from the other side of the door. Gail could be heard walking along the upstairs hall.

"Get—get the door, Jake." Her strained request whispered against his face, making it even harder for him to move. When he felt his hold on her loosen, he didn't know where he had gotten the strength to let her go.

She took a step back from him while he stood still. Her eyes glowed silver in the nearby candle light. Before another word could be spoken, she retrieved the fallen blankets from the steps and retreated up stairs.

It took another loud rap on the door to pull him from what he thought felt like a dream. Jake wiped at his eyes and cleared his throat before he looked away from the stairs. He went and answered the door.

**TBC**


	13. Chapter 13

**Disclaimer: **Don't own Jericho and its characters, just like to use them in my own storyline.

**Authors Note: **This is still my therapy of sorts and I hope you continue to enjoy it too. This chapter starts shortly after the last chapter ended. The girls are having their party and Constantino is still on the loose. Aside from that, I think this is one of my more sentimental journeys into the lives of our Jericho citizens.

BIG THANKS to JT and Midnight for being wonderful sounding boards and Beta. And no Midnight, my fingers haven't dropped off from the editing yet! Thanks to the above and Kim for attempting to find a song that fits Eric. And to JT for inspiring my Johnston/Gail moment. And dponice, thanks for _Green Acres_. It fit perfect.

**Warning:** Dangerous use of a thread spool, some mushiness and another TBC. It's that or THE END.

**Chapter Thirteen: Someone to Watch Over Me**

by Ann Pendragon

It didn't take too long for Jake to realize how dangerous a situation he had placed himself in. Even after the bombs, a room full of vociferous woman gearing up for a wedding was a dangerous place for a lone man to be. His only option? Wait for reinforcements at a safe distance…

"Mom, I'm gonna go outside and wait for Stanley and Eric."

"Now Jake, don't let us chase you out of your own home." Mimi smiled coyly at him, before taking a sip of what Jake had earlier identified as Kool-Aid and Bailey's home brew. If the girls weren't going to Bailey's tonight, Bailey's was coming to them. Jake could only imagine how well alcohol and fixing dresses would go together.

"Mary bringing more of that abomination to drinking?" Jake grimaced as both Mimi and Jessica took another swig with relish.

"That's the plan, law-man." Jessica seemed to be already enjoying her rare evening off from the clinic. Jake could only grin and shake his head at Mimi and Bonnie's friend.

"Now, Jake," Mimi started. "About this kicking you out of your home tonight…"

Jake bowed his head for the attack. _'Here it comes.'_

"I think it's a fair trade since you took away my last hoorah at Bailey's as a single girl. I mean, maybe it's not a night club, but for being in the sticks it's what I had." Mimi added as a side note, "And then you and the boys decided, in all your caveman bravado, to have the lot of you roaming around the house and property while I'm trying to have the only bachelorette party I'm going to get---if Stanley is lucky." Mimi took a breath, pointing her glass at Jake. "And I acquiesced with minimal resistance to all of this because one little has-been of a tyrant—"

"I get the point, Mimi." Jake quickly interrupted. He really wished it had been Stanley who had broken the news to Mimi that her special night wasn't going to go as planned. Stanley had argued earlier that evening that since Jake was the Sheriff, the best man, and trained in hand to hand combat, it was his job to tell Mimi.

When Jake had opened the door for the girls earlier that evening, any notice of the rough shape he was in was forgotten as soon as he told Mimi the change in her evening plans. His mother's quick thinking to bring home some of Bailey's moonshine when Jake told her the night's plans—and asking Mary to bring more when she came—was the only thing that made Mimi's acceptance of the situation as easy as it had been. Mary's newest acquisition of fruit flavor packets for the girls' brew only sweetened the deal. _'Gail Green, the perfect hostess.' _

"Jake, honey." The Hostess broke in, steering the subject from troubling waters. "All you boys could use a haircut before the big day. When Eric and Stanley come home, or better, tomorrow morning when there is more light I could…"

"Mom," Jake warned.

"Jake, you are well past due." Gail eyed the long locks that had developed the habit of brushing over her son's handsome features.

"Wasn't going to say anything, Jake, but you and Stanley are kinda looking like scruffy dogs…" Mimi agreed.

"I'll pass that on to Stanley" Jake grunted.

"He could tie that mop into a ponytail," Jessica offered.

"Ha, ha." Jake pointed his finger at Jessica and then to all those in the room. "This is why it's a good idea for me to get out of Dodge, before it's too late."

"I think it makes him look sexy." Bonnie signed instead of speaking to Mimi. Mimi snorted into her drink.

Jake turned to Bonnie and signed back. "And I saw that. Remember, I do this too." He rewarded her with a disarmingly charming smile. The woman who understood broke into laughter, while Bonnie turned red.

"I'd say Stanley could be a golden retriever." Jake heard Jessica confess to Mimi as he turned from the women.

"What sort of dog is Jake? Bonnie spoke.

"Lone wolf!" Mimi and Jessica squealed in chorus, leading into a fit of laughter that followed Jake's speedy escape towards the kitchen.

'_As if Mary needs to bring them any more booze.' _Jake rolled his eyes.

Just as he made it to the kitchen entryway, Heather was coming out of it with his mother's sewing kit. Deep brown eyes met sky blue. Automatically, they made their apologies and tried to step aside for the other to pass, but to no avail. The dance ended, followed by an uneasy silence. For that moment, they may as well have been back on the steps. They stood just as close, and it felt just as intense.

Jake bowed his head so only she could see, and gambled a gentle lopsided grin. He felt his heart skip a beat when Heather cautiously looked to him and returned it. Something had changed. Her fleeting smile gave him hope.

Shhhtt. "Jake, this is Bill. Come in."

Jake still held Heather's eyes. "I gotta take this." He spoke low, not sure why he felt the need to explain.

"I know." Heather's voice was almost a whisper.

Jake nodded his head and quickly moved around her, heading for the back door. "Yeah, Bill, I'm here. Hang on a minute."

Heather looked up to the other woman in the room, only now noticing the very attentive, very silent audience. She could feel the heat that pulsed in her body now spread over her in a deep blush.

"Wow!" Mimi spoke first, but it pretty much summed it up for everyone.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Outside, Jake scrubbed his hands roughly over his face before taking Bill's report.

"Bill." Jake growled.

"You said to call if anything hokey was happening around town." Bill defended. He could hear the temper in his boss's voice and quickly continued. "Carl Mackey came into Town Hall about twenty minutes ago and started screaming blue bloody murder for the 'brain protector' and 'delivering us' from the coming evil. Then he tried to jump over Gray when the two of them met in the door of the Sheriff's Department."

Jake was going to ask what Gray was doing over in his office this late, but questioning his deputy's loyalties was at the bottom of his list tonight. "So is Carl okay?"

"Yeah, he's okay. Our **Mayor** is fine too." Bill answered. "We threw Carl in lock-up."

Jake paced a step or two in front of the porch swing, before calming. "What did I tell you about Carl?" Jake questioned, not expecting an answer. "He's crazy, not criminal. However much he scares the hell out of you or Gray, he isn't looking to hurt you. Gray just made one hell of a door when Carl wanted to pass."

"Jake, the guy is nuts!"

Jake placed the radio to his head for a moment and then steadied himself. "Now you're getting it, Bill. So take him to the clinic. NOW."

"I'll send him with Rudy."

"You'll send him with yourself. Rudy doesn't have the kind of experience to deal with Carl, and your shift is ending soon. Call it your last duty of the day."

"Roger. Out." Jake heard his deputy mumble something else before switching off.

Jake fell into the swing at the corner of the porch and put his boot up on the rail.

"Does any of it get simpler or easier?"

'_Sorry, kiddo.'_

'_Afraid not, son.'_

"Great." Jake just closed his eyes.

"Jericho. This is New Bern. Come in." Jake recognized Russell's voice and quickly responded, getting up from the swing.

"What's the news?"

"Good and bad. Undecided which. Found the vehicle Constantino used to escape in just outside of Negley, stripped and burnt out with a fried body at the wheel."

"Is it Constantino?"

"That's the bad part, Jake. There isn't enough left to identify and we haven't found Constantino's other man." It was not the news Jake was hoping for.

"Maybe your ex-Mayor made use of his loyal companion to help him play dead." Jake's assumption was grisly, but realistic. Phil Constantino was in the habit of using others as a means to an end. No one knew that better than the woman now living in his house. Jake felt himself go cold inside.

"Probably, but we have to be sure…"

"So the search continues." Jake finished for the other man.

"Yeah," Russell paused. "How's Heather?"

'_Good question.'_ "She's holding up. Being Heather."

"So she's keeping _too_ busy?" Russell knew Heather.

"Yeah, she is." Jake smiled softly into the night. "At least she's not alone, she has friends." The answer sounded benign, but it was enough to tell Russell over the radio, and without telling the rest of the listening world, that Heather was also protected.

"Glad to hear that. Jericho is lucky to have her as a friend…so are you."

Jake didn't answer at first. "I know."

"Okay, Jake. I'll call if I get any more information. If you see Stanley this evening tell him congratulations. Hope his wedding beats the storm."

"Thanks, I will. Jericho out."

Jake swung the strap on the radio over his arm and rechecked his side arm, before leaving the porch to take another long lap of the property. As he walked and listened to the sounds of the night, he could feel some of the pent up pressure in him dissipating. He needed to do something of use. Talking with Russell about New Bern's unsuccessful manhunt had made him feel the least useful he had felt in a long time. The urge to go and track down New Bern's ex-Mayor was becoming too tempting again.

'_Running out half cocked isn't going to do a damn bit of good, boy. Frustration makes mistakes and bodies pile.'_

"I know." Jake mumbled through a controlled growl.

'_You're where you need to be, son. Don't doubt that.'_

Jake eyed his surroundings and nodded his head. "_Maybe when my reinforcements come we can rig up some noise makers around the perimeter."_

'_Smart boy.'_

Soon Eric and Stanley would arrive, not only to help with guard duty, but to **be** guarded themselves. The closer his family was to him, the better. Jake shook his head at the thought. Never in a million years did he think he would believe that. He had spent the majority of his life pushing his loved ones away, but things had changed. He had changed. Responsibility had a way of making a man grow up.

Jake found his way to the back porch, settling against the rail once again looking to the sky for some answers. "I've been doing this a lot these days; looking to the two of you."

'_Does it help?'_

"Yeah. Sometimes." Jake listened to the happy chatter spilling out of the house, thinking of the people he cared about the most.

"The list keeps getting longer, Dad. How do I protect them all?"

"You can't. That's what makes letting people become important to you such a scary proposition. Try being a parent sometime."

"Mom?"

Jake spun around to see his mother standing in the shadows of the screen door. He wasn't sure how to react to being found out, let alone by his mom. Any feelings of embarrassment or apprehension fell away when he looked into his mother's eyes and saw understanding glistening there.

"You've been talking to your father?" There was no point in denying it.

"Yeah, Granddad too. Crazy maybe?"

She gave her son a warm smile. "No, not crazy." She stepped through the door and silently settled beside her son.

"Sometimes, when I talk to them, Idon't feel so alone in all of this andthings make a little more sense." Jake's voice scarcely broke the silence between them. "I'll always miss them. It just hurts less when I do this." As the revelations drifted away into the night, Jake noted his mother's continued silence. It reminded him of something he had been meaning to talk to her about.

"You know its okay to let people see you miss him, Mom. No one would think any less of you. Might even hurt less if you did."

Gail cleared her throat and shook her head. She had come out to talk to her son about Heather. She hadn't expected him to be the one giving advice.

"Your father would have wanted me to be strong…"

"But not impenetrable." Gail looked to Jake as he kept his eyes fixed on the sky. His empathy moved her, as well as his intentions. '_When did my son start watching over me?'_

"Pot calling the kettle black." He heard the tears in her voice before he saw them.

"For once this isn't about me, Mom. It's about you." Jake heard her draw in a sob, making his heart clench. He reached out to her and began to pull her into his arms. She only fought him a moment before allowing the comfort. "I'm here, Mom. I'm here."

"I miss him so much." And then she cried.

"I know, Mom. I do too." Jake allowed his own tears to fall, knowing they fell to heal this time; not to hurt. He held her close to him, the shrieks of laughter from the party inside the house contrasting with their moment of mourning.

"When did my son become wiser than his mother?" Gail finally spoke.

A light grin caressed Jake's lips while he continued to hold his mother. "I'm not wiser; I just know how stubborn the two of us can be when it comes to letting go."

Gail looked up to her first born.

"You know, all this time I blamed your stubborn streak on your father's side of the family." Her son's grin graduated into a full out smile that sparked one of her own. Gail settled back against her son and a comfortable silence fell over them.

"I hope that with this new wisdom of yours, you'll finally realize you're not alone in all of this? We are all here for you, son, no matter what." Jake released his mother and stepped to the railing. He stared out into the night, his eyes focusing on the silhouette of the windmill at the back edge of the property.

"You're not going to start the whole 'weight of the world on my shoulders' speech again, are you?" Jake didn't get an answer.

"And while you've been talking to the dead, there has been one of the living you've needed to tell a few things to. If you did, maybe you wouldn't feel so alone." Jake bowed his head in frustration now and snorted.

"I tried…I did…I think she heard me." Jake thought of the brief smile Heather had given him a short while ago. "But it's no guarantee she's not going to run from me the next time; like a bat out of hell on a mission."

Gail smirked at the irony of Jake's words. "She's scared, Jake. She's ashamed for something she had no control over. It's gonna take time."

"So what do we do?"

"We continue to show her how much we love her and accept her." Gail looked at her son and told him what was long overdue. "And you tell her you love her, Jake."

She watched her son's face. He wasn't going to deny it. Not this time. "Love doesn't cure all ills, son, but it can help the both of you heal. If you let it."

She took his face in her hands, and searched her son's wide eyes. He was shaken, and that was good. She kissed his lips and pulled away from him.

"Where-where are you going?"

Gail flashed him an enigmatic smile. "I think I'm going to go back in and join the girls. Your father approves of his wife getting a little tipsy for a good cause."

Jake smiled in spite of himself.

"Love you, Mom."

"Love you, my stubborn, wonderful boy."

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Later that evening…

"Heather honey, do you have it on yet?" Gail heard a muffled "not yet" behind the downstairs bathroom door.

Gail put the last stitch in Mimi's dress and then picked up her glass for another drink. She watched approvingly, as the bride dipped and swayed across the room in her new pearl colored gown. The cut was simple, almost like a long slip, and its fabric draped and clung to its wearer's curves.

It had taken a bit of finagling, but with Gail's position with some of the town's authorities, the women in the room would be wearing last year's finest in fashion tomorrow, thanks to Sissy's Women's Apparel and Accessories.

Sadly, Sissy Martin had been one of the numbers who passed away during the worst of the winter months. Shortly after, her store was seized by the town government and stripped of its usable goods. Frankly, Gail was surprised to find that some of Sissy's stock still hanging in the abandoned store when Eric gave her the keys. Then again, unless Jericho High was looking to open and have prom or the town was proposing to have the first post-apocalyptic fashion show, most of the left over stock was only going to be good for possible trade or recycled fabric.

Gail smiled to the other women in the room as they watched Mimi enjoy her moment with the first 'non-hand-me-down' item she had worn since the bombs. With each sway of the dress's delicate fabric, a very indelicate set of clunks could be heard from under the folds.

"I think you should wear the boots, Mimi. Stanley would love them." Bonnie joked, eyeing the worn boot toe protruding from under the gown.

Mimi stopped her sweeping motion around the floor with her drink and her dress, narrowing her eyes at her soon-to-be sister-in-law.

"Not a chance." Mimi reached out to the heels Jessica was holding, before putting down her drink. She lovingly stroked the strappy shoes with an index finger, but then frowned. She eyed the heels and then looked down at the boot toe peeking out from under her dress hem. Her lips lifted into a soft grin. _'Then again…'_

The bathroom door creaked open. "Oh, honey, you look beautiful."

The women turned towards the washroom and took in the pretty brunette before them. Cool periwinkle blue fabric hugged Heather's curves, held up by straps that just barely capped her shoulders with fabric. Heather blushed a little with the undivided attention.

"Guys, it's not **that** big of a change."

"I don't know, Professor." Mimi's new nick name for Heather. "I don't think your fellow grease chimps are going to recognize you." Mimi smiled broadly as Heather shook her head.

"Or a certain Sheriff." Mary added. Heather's blush deepened to a crimson red.

"It's true!" Mimi zeroed in on the new line of the discussion and grinned at Heather with glee. "Its not like all of Jericho hasn't been watching the two of you moon over one another since your return. Watching you guys has become this town's favorite spectator sport. 'Will they or won't they?' Mimi grinned broadly, wiggling her brow at the other women in the room. "And don't think that the old biddies didn't get wind of a certain cat fight…"

"Mimi," Bonnie warned.

Heather twitched uncomfortably and looked away. To Heather, the discussion was beginning to feel more and more like a roast. Most of her life had been spent in a small town and she was pretty well aware that gossip would always be the staple of small town entertainment. She just never thought that anything in her life would become that entertaining. _'Oh God, the whole town knows…'_

Mimi was going to say she would have sold tickets at the event and didn't realize everyone's sweet innocent Heather had it in her to participate, let alone win a good old fashion hair pulling. She stopped though, when she looked at the top of Heather's now down turned head. She was on her way to drunk, but not without some sense of knowing when she had gone too far. Mimi and Heather hadn't been friends for long, but they shared enough people in common for her to know that Heather was going to be a good friend.

Mimi placed her shoes on the couch and stood in front of Heather. She picked up the fallen strands of the other woman's hair and held them to the side of her head.

"There. Maybe we can put one of those flowers Bonnie found in your hair." Mimi grinned warmly at Heather, watching the other woman's head tilt up and offer a grin of her own. "Alcohol makes me truthful and with less tact that I already don't have, so if you have any embarrassing questions for me, tonight is the night."

Heather smiled at her friend's apology and made a note to take her up on her offer later.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

"Wow, she looks amazing." Stanley gaped.

"Who?" Jake asked from his post at the bottom of the steps, his eyes on the shadows.

"Who do you think, Jake? My future wife." Just as the words were uttered, something thudded off the kitchen window screen and clattered into the sink. Mimi had caught sight of her future husband peeking in on her party and her dress, and decided to wing one of Gail's thread spools at the screen with deadly accuracy. Stanley quickly pulled from the window and grinned broadly at the other two men.

"Are you trying to tick off your bride, Stanley?" Eric questioned.

"Great way to screw yourself out of a honeymoon, my friend," Jake warned his mischievous friend, not turning from his post.

"Naw," Stanley pushed the concern away. "This is like foreplay for us." Eric let out a chuckle and Jake just shook his head.

"Besides, she's not half as mad as she looks most of the time. Mimi is tough, but she likes to act tougher."

Jake snorted in response. "So why did you have me tell her the change of plans tonight and not you?"

"All ready told you, man. It was your duty. Besides, I didn't want to screw myself out of a honeymoon."

"I take back what I said about you earlier, Stanley." Eric laughed. "You'll make a great husband."

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

"Come on, dear. Up on the foot stool so I can bring up that hem. Mary, could you help Bonnie with that zipper?"

From atop the stool, Heather watched the other women in the room getting in and out of their dresses, drinking and chatting happily about things that their everyday lives didn't give them time for. These women were her friends, and now they had become her family.

After her mother's death and then her father's, she no longer had a family to speak of. And by college, any friends she'd had in New Bern she had lost touch with. So when she came to Jericho to teach, her co-workers became her friends. But family? Even though she was well liked by those around her, she always felt like the odd man out. And when it came to Love, she struck out. Heather could not help but feel very much alone and a part of her had begun to accept that was how her life was to be. Now-well now she understood how wrong she had been.

Heather smiled at the busy women around her. _'This is really my life?'_ Contrary to this day and everything that came before it, she felt…normal, she felt accepted, and she felt loved.

Heather felt a lone tear slide down her cheek and then a warm hand grasp her wrist. Heather looked down to Gail's understanding smile.

"All good things happen in their time, honey."

Heather was caught off guard by the older woman's words, but felt their comfort none the less. She smiled and quickly brushed away the tear, trying to hold still for Gail as she went to work on the dress hem.

'_All good things.' _Many of those good things seemed to have crept past the bad today. Jake was not the least of those "good things".

Tonight, it was more than Jake's words, but in those fathomless eyes she had so often found herself lost in, did he tell her things that words could do no justice. Before now, she could have at least lied to herself, saying that Jake only saw her as a good friend. But now she knew in her heart, it wasn't so. And God help her, she felt the same.

From the moment he'd given her his name on the school bus, the feeling had only grown in strength. Even when Heather told herself it was a childish crush she was experiencing, she knew she loved him. Jake Green wasn't the town bad boy or even the town hero in her heart. He was Jake. It was all he ever had to be for her.

Out of the corner of her eye, Heather caught sight of the top of Stanley's head and his rifle barrel poking up over the kitchen window sill. She grinned when he placed his finger to his lips and gave her a conspiring wink, before slowly sinking out of sight. Mimi didn't notice him this time. If she had, another one of Gail's belongings would have gone flying.

Heather's grin faltered when she remembered why Stanley's presence was needed here tonight. The reminder was as solid as the rifle on Stanley's shoulder. Sometimes the bad still liked to leave its reminders.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

"Stanley?"

"Yeah."

"You nervous?"

Stanley grinned at first. He knew what Jake was asking and though he would have enjoyed joking about his wedding day right now, he realized his friend was asking a serious question. Even with Jake's features obscured by the night, Stanley could tell he was asking the question for his own piece of mind as much as his. Stanley stepped a space closer to his friend and leaned against the porch rail. Eric was presently in the house, getting all of them some much needed coffee.

"Nervous about the big leap? Yeah, I am. Could even say I'm a little scared, but it's a good scared."

Jake looked at his friend again and studied his profile in the moon light. "Good scared?"

"Yeah, the kind of scared me and you would have paid money for when we were kids. Adrenaline coursing through your veins, taking the biggest dare of your life, scared as hell. But now I know it's not a broken neck or a skinned knee I'm likely to get when I make it to the other side." Stanley smiled at his best friend, his features serene.

"I want tomorrow more than I ever thought I could want anything, Jake. I'd never tell Bonnie, but since our parents died I didn't want my life, not like it became. I'll never regret keeping Bonnie and me together on my family's farm, but the responsibilities, the farm itself and…well, everything. Felt like I was just treading water and never getting to the shore. But now…now I've got Mimi. I still have the responsibilities and the farm and whatever the hell else this messed up world has in store for us. But it's taking this leap with Mimi tomorrow that's making the rest of that okay. I want my life now, Jake. And I figure the scared part in all of this is just a reminder that I'm still alive."

Jake could easily have said tonight that Stanley was the bravest man he had ever known. Maybe Stanley joked that Jake was the death-defying, fearless one, but it was Stanley who was brave where it counted. Stanley was not afraid of living. In his thirty-two years, he'd never once ran from life. Jake envied his friend that fact.

"Jake?"

"Yeah, Stanley?"

"Don't let me one up you here, man. Jump, Jake. Just jump. You won't regret it."

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

"Well ladies, let's say we try some of those party games the Professor here cooked up…"

The remainder of the evening consisted of alcohol, pin the veil on the bride, alcohol, screeching laughter, alcohol, and then an insanely executed version of wedding charades. It ended with Bonnie guessing "chicken with its head cut off" after Mimi started flapping her arms widely about the living room, knocking over a stack of books and then the sewing kit. Both women dissolved into raucous laughter that none of the other party members understood.

"Inside joke." Mimi panted between laughter.

"It was supposed to be 'doves'." Heather declared.

By now, the dresses were all fitted and the rest of the games were well past most of the women's hand-eye coordination. So that left the little bit of snacks they had scavenged, alcohol and talk.

"Do you and Stanley have a song?" Heather slurred sleepily. At present, she was sharing one of the couches with Bonnie, her head on the center cushion with her legs over the arm kicking lazily at the air.

"No." Mimi lied. "Maybe. I don't know. I guess. Stanley picked something, George Strait I think, but I can't remember."

"Doesn't seem like it's a song for you." Mary opined.

"Yeah." Jessica agreed. "I bet you got one."

"Mimi?" Heather teased. "What's your song?"

Mimi blushing and not answering just made the other women even more curious.

"Gr—acres." Mimi mumbled.

Heather pushed her head back into the cushion and tried to look past Bonnie at Mimi with her upside-down view. "What was that?"

"_Green Acres_, okay? It's the _Green Acres_ theme song." She sniffed as she pulled her glass closer to her chest in the recliner. "I watched a lot of TV Land back in DC. I liked the show, okay?"

The laughter started with Bonnie. She had been watching Mimi's lips the entire time. Then Heather started to giggle and that set off a domino effect in the room until all the women were howling with laughter and Mimi was scrunched into her perch.

Jessica stopped laughing long enough to sum it up for the entire room.

"Mimi, you are _Green Acres_!" This started another round of drunken laughter that finally took Mimi along with it.

"God, I need another drink." Mimi struggled up out of the chair only to be met by Gail, who had the container in her hand.

"Allow me, dear."

Mimi smiled her thanks to her hostess. Her eyes became thoughtful. "Did you and Johnston have a song?"

Gail sat down on the footstool beside Mimi and became momentarily silent.

"I'm sorry Gail. If you're not comfortable--I should have known…"

"No, no, honey. It's okay. We had a couple of songs. We use to dance a lot, back when we were young. We always found a new song we called ours. The last song we had was _The Dance_ by Garth Brooks. My husband wasn't much for contemporary country at the time, but he loved that song." Gail's smile was wistful.

"Last time we danced to it, was the last New Year my family celebrated together. It was snowing and the boys had the radio in the living room on too loud. I was going to tell them to turn it off. We were going to be late for the New Year celebration downtown and how was it going to look if the Mayor and his family didn't show. But then that song began to play..." Gail's voice drifted a moment. "Johnston pulled me out the front door and past our boys and April. I know they thought the Mayor and his wife were drunk that night. I yelled at him that it was freezing outside, but he only laughed. He told me how we weren't going to feel the cold. He had me, his warm summer wind. His Gail."

Mimi watched Gail wipe at her eyes and placed a hand on her arm.

"I'm okay, honey. Really." Gail placed her hand over the other woman's. "I just haven't let myself think of those things since-since Johnston passed. But it's good that I do--think of these things, that is." Both women shared a warming smile and took another drink.

"Ever connect any songs to your son's?"

Gail looked at Mimi quizzically, but seriously considered the question. "Yeah, I guess I have. I use to sing Beatles songs to Eric when he was small. He'd get those horrible ear aches, but when I sang to him, he would quiet right down. _Hey Jude_ was always his favorite." Gail remembered. "Sometimes I still see him as that little boy."

"And Jake?"

"Jake—he's been _Desperado_ by The Eagles to me for a pretty long time. Longer than I have liked." Gail smiled sadly.

"Now that I know Jake a little better, I can see it." Mimi noticed Gail staring at the couch by the fireplace and the now sleeping brunette on it. "But maybe those days are numbered for your boy." Mimi took another sip of her drink.

"Maybe" Gail agreed. The woman became quiet. In their silence, they realized that they were the only ones left awake.

"Why did you ask if I thought of songs for my children?" Gail asked. "You're not…"

"No, NO! I mean not yet. God, not yet." Mimi stammered. The idea of being a married woman was still sinking in.

"That's not going to be your 'something new' then." Gail chuckled.

"I asked because I've got an idea for—for your desperado, tomorrow. You in?" The twinkle in Gail's eyes was all the answer she needed.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

The next thing Gail remembered was being lightly shaken by Jake and nearly falling off the footstool beside the recliner.

"Is it morning already?" She asked groggily.

"Yeah, Mom. 1:30 a.m. and counting. Time to get ya to bed." Jake looked over to his brother and shared a smile. Eric was already dragging a sleepy Mary into the den and the hide-a-bed he had used the night before.

Gail tried to get up from her spot and wobbled before she made it all the way up. Jake made a grab for her before she went down.

"Whoa Mom, it's not a race. Get your bearings first." Jake couldn't help the chuckle in his voice. This moment was priceless. "Don't think I've ever seen ya trashed before?"

"Johnston Jacob Green, Jr., you called your mother trash." Gail scolded, as she tried her luck getting up again.

"Trashed, Mom, trashed. Not trash."

"Uh, oh, Jake. Your mom's using middle names." Stanley strolled over and started to lift his bride after checking on his sister.

Gail turned her attentions on Stanley. She wasn't so drunk not to be able to retaliate.

"And as for you, mister, I now know things about you best not said around other men folk, so you just better behave."

Stanley raised his brow up under his bangs. "Yes ma'am." He grinned.

Gail looked around at her unconscious house guests and sighed.

"Stanley, put Mimi in with Heather tonight; Jake's room is a mess." Gail glared at her son now. "You didn't change your sheets, Jake."

"God forbid." Jake mumbled.

"I-I heard that." Gail yawned in spite of herself.

Stanley bent down to Jake's ear before hauling Mimi away. "Gee, Jake. I thought you had the nice mom." Jake grinned and shook his head.

"Are we married yet?" They heard Mimi mumble to her groom.

"Not yet, sweet cheeks. Just practicing carrying the bride over the threshold."

"Oh, okay then. But who's sweet cheeks?" Mimi yawned and then fell back to sleep the rest of the way up the stairs in Stanley's arms.

Gail held onto the back of the recliner and Jake's arm until she found her "sober legs", before wandering over to Jessica. She was stretched out face-down on the long couch by the wall. Gail took the quilt from behind her and wrapped up the grown woman as if she were a small child.

"Poor girl, no family…"

"You adopting another one, Mom?" Gail turned and gave her son a sour look. She noticed his attentions had already turned to the other couch.

Jake knelt beside Heather's sleeping form. Bonnie still took up the other side of the couch, out like a light. He gently pried the throw pillow from Heather's arms and grinned when her brow furrowed in sleep.

"How much did she drink, Mom?" Jake remembered a conversation he and Heather once had about the occasional light beer.

Gail looked down at the young woman and then to her son. "Not enough. I think the day knocked her out more than the alcohol." She watched her son reach out to Heather's face and brush the stray hair that lay over her lips. The tenderness of his actions swelled her heart.

Jake slid his arms under Heather's limp form and lifted her gently, cradling her to his chest. Asleep, Heather seemed to feel the comfort of Jake's body and snuggled into him, burying her face into his neck and curling her hands into the fabric of his shirt. Jake closed his eyes briefly, responding to the intimacy of her movements. He tried to shift her body while discretely trying to control his reaction to her. She did not wake.

Gail settled down to where Heather had just been and watched her son walk to the steps, the young woman she knew meant the world to him firmly clutched in his arms. A song started to play in her head, one she hadn't heard in years. The words caught in her dry throat, but the melody got her to hum.

…_please put on some speed. Follow my lead…_

Gail watched Jake disappear up the steps with Heather and could hear their combined weight on the floor boards above. And then she heard the creak of Jake's bedroom door.

…_Oh how I need, someone to watch over me._

"Johnston, I think our boy is going to be okay."

**TBC.**

_**Someone To Watch Over Me**_

_**By George and Ira Gershwin (1926)**_

_  
_**_There's a saying old, says that love is blind_**_  
_**_Still we're often told ,"seek and ye shall find"_**_  
_**_So I'm gonna seek a certain lad I've had in mind_**

**_Looking everywhere, haven't found him yet _**_  
_**_He's the big affair I cannot forget_**_  
_**_Only man I ever think of with regret_**

_  
_**_I'd like to add his initial to my monogram_**_  
_**_Tell me where is the shepherd for this lost lamb?_**

_  
_**_There's a somebody I'm longing to see_**_  
_**_I hope that he turns out to be_**_  
_**_Someone who'll watch over me_**

_  
_**_I'm a little lamb who's lost in the wood_**_  
_**_I know I could always be good_**_  
_**_To one who'll watch over me_**

**_Though he may not be the man_**_  
_**_Some girls think of as handsome_**_  
_**_To my heart he carries the key_**

**_Won't you tell him please_**_  
_**_To put on some speed_**_  
_**_Follow my lead_**_  
_**_Oh, how I need_**_  
_**_Someone to watch over me_**


	14. Chapter 14

**Disclaimer: **Don't own Jericho or its characters. They are not my creation. But this story line is my own.

**Authors Note:** I was in the middle of Chapter 14 and realized that the start of the new chapter would be better placed at the end of the previous chapter and not the start of the present. (I wrote that to be confusing. Did it work?) So here is a little something to tide ya over till Chapter 14 (The wedding chapter). This is moments after Chapter 13. A few of you wanted to know what happened when Jake took Heather upstairs and his thoughts. Specially my dear Beta Midnight. Thanks dear gal.

**Chapter 13: Someone To Watch Over Me (Additional Ending)**

by Ann Pendragon

He pushed open the door and carried her to his bed, placing her gently among the rumpled sheets. A warm smile danced in Jake's eyes after removing her boots to reveal one red sock, then one rainbow striped.

'_Only my Heather.'_

It wasn't till after he had pulled the quilt up over her, did the full weight of his admittance settle on him. _'Mine.'_

"I should have told you on the steps." He whispered his regret. _'Should have told you a million other times before now.'_

"So-kay." Still asleep, Heather's voice drifted out in a sigh. Jakes brows rose under his bangs as he lowered his body to the floor beside her. His eyes became wistful as he watched her turn towards him in her slumber and curl into his sheets in search of comfort. He longed to be that comfort for her and so much more.

For a while he just watched her sleep, like his own private therapy session. Only this early morning he wasn't so much as comforted by his close proximity to her, but aroused. Something he found both inappropriate and inconvenient at that moment, but very, very real.

'_Mine.'_ The word repeated inside his head and heart, and felt resonate through his being. Leaning against the night stand, he unabashedly drank her in, knowing he could never think of her as anyone else's, but his. And it scared the hell out of him.

Scared—hell, he was petrified. Stanley was wrong. Way-back-when, he never would have paid money for this feeling, except to make it go away. A year ago-a lifetime ago, he would have ran as fast and as far from these things he felt, let alone the responsibilities that now shaped every aspect of his life. But now…

Jake reached out to her hair and pushed aside a few of the silky strands, shaking his head gently. _'I'm scared, Heather. Have been since the first moment I knew I needed you. And I'm scared of letting you in, but I'm more scared of not having you in my life. I want this life, Heather, and I can't live it without you.' _

He settled back against the night stand and continued his quiet vigil. He could feel sleep pull at the inner corners of his own eyes. And slowly, his eyes began to close…

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

"_I will be there when this goes down." His voice was flat, emotionless, but left no question the finite nature of the demand. He watched Russell nod his head as answer. He would not deny him this moment they had all been waiting patiently for. This was not only a day of reckoning for the people of New Bern, but a day due Jericho and its Sheriff, Jake Green._

_The doors of the van swung open and both men emerged into the early morning light, grim determination set their features. Followed by four other armed men, they quickly carved a straight path to City Halls doors and entered. By then two other large vehicles had emerged from neighboring side streets and other individuals were filtering out of store fronts on the main drag. Some moved quietly in line with those who had just entered the front doors, the others circled around the perimeter of the old stone building, setting up position around the remaining exits. _

_Inside, the lead men passed a pair of armed guards, their target's personal security detail. Russell nodded to both men as they too fell into step with the growing militia of townsfolk, their loyalties proven long before now._

"_He's alone." One of the guards spoke as they reached the Mayor's domain. Russell looked to his men and then to Jake, who were all at the ready. With one firm push the large mahogany doors fell open with a crash. The sound reverberated around the room, startling its once lone occupant out of his chair._

"_What the hell do you people…?"_

"_Philip Constantino, you are under arrest for crimes against your people and the neighboring town of Jericho. We are here to demand you step down as Mayor of New Bern and come with us…"_

"_So what is this? Some sort of attempt at mutiny?" Constantino's posture had changed from surprised to incredulous in a matter of seconds. The dark, bearded man stared down his accusers. Each of his words dripped venom. "And what right do any of you have passing judgment over me? I am your Mayor. I have kept you alive…."_

"_NO." Russell' voice boomed out over his failed leader. "You were our dictator. As our Sheriff, you gave up our home to Ravenwood when you were supposed to help protect it, just so you could push your way into the Mayor's chair. And then your lunatic hatred against our neighbors nearly destroyed us all." _

_Constantino's eyes glinted, hearing the damning information, but kept his steely resolve in silence. _

"_You helped suck the life out of this town. But that time is over now." Russell continued. "New Bern will no longer continue its slow death under your rule." Sounds of approval could be heard around the room. "You will be given a fair trial…"_

"_Fair trial..." Constantino spat at the room with contempt, and then stopped when his eyes met and bore down on the one man his wrath had never deadened for. _

"_YOU!" The enraged tyrant lunged from his spot and was caught by the men around him. He was quickly relieved of his sidearm in the process._

_Jake quietly stepped up and met Constantino's fiery glare with grim satisfaction. _

"_Jericho's very own hero, Sheriff Green." The elder man sneered. "Couldn't get me yourself, so you had my own town do it for you."_

"_I can't take credit for this." Jake broke his silence, his voice a controlled growl. "If I had my way you would have been dead a month ago." _

"_You will wish you had killed me, son." Constantino's voice became low and just as deadly, barely auditable to most in the room. "This is not over. Before you can blink, I will find you and take away everything you care about. Just like I did your father." Constantino began to struggle in the other men's grasp as Russell motioned for them to handcuff him. Jake allowed the satisfying click of metal bank the rage Constantino's admittance burned inside of him. _

"_You will be helpless to do a __**damn**__ thing." The ex-Mayor continued his vehement prophecy to Jake, while being pulled away. "And I'll start with our girl, Ms. Lisinski…"_

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Jake shook out of his sleep, his mind bounced between his nightmare memory and panic. _'Heather…?' _The sound of her peaceful sleep and the soft smell of her soap brought him back to reality. Heather still slept in his bed and she was safe.

The old wind-up clock on his nightstand told him he had dozed off only a short while. He could still hear his mother downstairs, now talking to his brother. Jake stood from his spot at Heather's side and re-arranged his gun belt as he looked over her once more. Less than two months ago, he had thought he had lost her, and that was before he understood what he had. Jake bent at the waist and brushed his lips against her brow. His heart still hammered in his chest from the memory he had just recalled.

"Whatever may come, I will keep you safe. I promise." He took one more look at his love and left to continue his watch.

**TBC**


	15. Chapter 15

**Disclaimer: **Don't own Jericho or its characters. They are not my creation. But this story line is my own.

**Authors Note:** Sorry it took so long. RL and all. If it helps, the next chapter will be coming in a few days to a week. This is Mimi and Stanley's wedding day. I think this chapter is along the same sentimental lines as the last, along with the humor thrown in. Thought I'd give our folks in Jericho some more nice moments, before all hell breaks loose. Thanks again Midnight for your beta services, you are one tireless chick. And ya got Jake without his shirt again. Go figure. And JT, on the record, I know the danger of blowing one's buttocks off when placing a **pistol** in the back of your jeans, but this is Jake. He might be screwing his head on a little straighter in this story, but he's still Jake. One bad habit at a time. And thanks.

**Chapter Fourteen: Perfect Moments **

by Ann Pendragon

_Red sky in the morning, sailor warning._

_Red sky at night, sailors delight._

Jake eyed the morning sky before him, tapping his radio against his thigh in a nervous Morse code. He leaned against the front porch rail and grudgingly yawned. He had sent Eric in for sleep a few hours earlier, and now he had just sent Stanley in to wake him and collect a couple Z's himself, before his big day got rolling.

The night had been quiet for them; no word or sign of Constantino. Instead of this giving some sort of relief, it only made his thoughts weigh heavier on his chest. _'Where is he?' _

Jake looked to the sky once more with furrowed brow. It was just one more inevitable thing he had to wait for. His lack of control over what was approaching, on all fronts, was becoming more and more unnerving.

"Come in, Jake. It's Jimmy."

"Jake here. Little early for your shift aren't you?"

"It's 7a.m. bos-Jake."

Jake grinned and shook his head. "So it is."

"Want me to pull the same duty as yesterday? Already in the vicinity."

Jake heard a car go past the house at a slow creep and stepped down from the front porch to watch Jimmy drive by.

"Yeah, that'll do." Jake raised his hand to wave. "Call ya when the assignment changes. Out."

"Hey Jake. Was that Jimmy?"

Jake looked up to the porch and his brother. More importantly, the coffee cup steaming in his hand. "Yeah, Jimmy's on till we leave the house. Is that my coffee cup?"

Eric grinned into the cup and took a sip. "Nope, and if you're looking for coffee, you need to see Mom. She needs to talk to you anyway."

Jake smelled something in the air, but mistook it for the coffee he had been craving. "I'll be right back."

Eric grinned into Jake's cup as he watched his brother finally leave his post and enter the house. "No, you won't."

Jake locked the door behind him and walked through the living room, passing Bonnie and Jessica's still sleeping forms curled up on the couches. He could hear the clank of plates and the light sound of his mother humming to herself over the dishes. He smiled when he heard an expletive puncture her tune. No doubt one of the dishes must have clanked a little too loud for her hung-over heightened senses to bear.

"Good to see you up and at 'em."

"I'm up. Still working on the at 'em. Been a while for your old mom, and my head is kicking my butt."

Jake smiled at his mother's frankness, while acquiring his needed target, coffee.

"Ahh. Ahh. Ah. No coffee for you. But you can have a biscuit." Gail swooped down on her oldest and lifted the cup from his hands.

"Mom! How in the hell am I going to wake up without my coffee?" Jake growled in frustration.

"You have to sleep first to wake up son, and you'll do that in about four hours, if not longer." Her son had made sure everyone else slept, safe and sound, in the house last night, leaving himself for last once more. That just didn't do for Gail.

"Mom," Jake challenged.

"Jake, do not argue with your mother when her head is on the verge of cracking open." Gail pointed a butter knife towards her son, driving home the point. "Besides, what use will you be if you're falling asleep beside the groom at the altar?" Her son scowled as answer.

"Honey," Gail reached out and placed her hand on his now sagging shoulder. "You need to understand that you're not our only protector."

"I know, Mom," he grudgingly replied.

"Do you?" She wasn't sure he did. "At best we have you boys in this house, Jimmy circling the wagons—yes, I saw him drive past—and half of Jericho's Sheriff's department at our beck and call if we need any protecting.

"At worst," Gail continued. "At worst, we have a house full of hung-over women on a wedding day morning; half of whom can shoot at shadows with the best of them. Either way, I'd say we'd fare a bit better than any uninvited guest." Gail took a deep breath, her head now a little worse for wear. "So, Jake…PLEASE!"

Jake took in his mother before him. Everything about her, in that moment, challenged him. But she did make a good point, especially about the house full of women…

Jake lowered his head to his chest and sighed. He had no other recourse and, frankly, he was exhausted. He wasn't going to win this round of verbal sparing, so he threw in the towel and began his walk to the kitchen's back steps in surrender.

Before he ascended the steps, Gail gave her son one more jab. "Oh, and son…Heather is up now, so you can have your bed back." She delivered it in a sweet unassuming voice.

Jake stopped and turned back to his mother, but she had began humming to herself again as she grabbed another dish to dry. He was fairly certain there was an innocent smile plastered on her face. Jake shook his head and turned back to the stairs, a victory hymn following him up the steps.

In the upstairs hall, Jake's boots on the hardwood were drowned out by the sound of running water in the bathroom. With only his and his mother's rooms open, he did not need to guess who was bathing. The thought and the image it projected were a better pick-me-up than the caffeine high he had been itching for just moments before.

'_Sleep, Jake. Sleep.' _He scolded.

Passing Heather's closed bedroom door, he could hear Stanley's resounding snore, followed by a shorter one, which was nearly a match in strength to its partner's.

'_I'll be damned.'_ Jake thought. _'She's just as loud as her groom.'_ Jake chuckled, knowing there was going to be hell to pay when Stanley got up and his mom got a hold of him. The groom spending the night before the big day in his bride's bed was nothing short of mutiny against his mother's strict terms of wedding etiquette.

Jake entered his own room and pulled off his uniform of layered shirts, then sat at the edge of his still unmade bed. It took no time at all to remember who had last slept in it. He reached out to the spot where Heather had lain and smoothed his open palm across, till his fingers were embedded in the soft folds of the sheets. He swore he could still feel her warmth there. Jake shook his head and breathed deep, trying to disperse all thoughts that had emerged since hearing Heather's shower, knowing none of those images would be helpful if he wanted sleep.

He unbuckled his gun belt, mindful not to lie down in bed with anything that would tear his mother's sheets. He had already paid penance for that sin. His un-holstered gun found its way to the left side of his pillow, but he decided to keep his back-up secured in its ankle holster, after he unceremoniously kicked his boots off into the corner of his room.

Jake's face fell into his pillow. Before he pulled up the sheets, he was assaulted with a new and unexpected smell. The heady scent of both their bodies now clung to his bedding. His pulse raced, but then gradually slowed and Jake could feel a familiar calm settle over him. Smiling, he drifted into quiet slumber.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Six hours later…

"Sheriff Jake?" He stirred, but didn't have it in him to open his eyes. "Sheriff Jaa-ake! Your Mamma said you need to get up."

Jake opened one eye to find Jimmy's little girl, Mimi's flower girl, looking down on him.

"Daddy got one of those."

Jakes eyes fully opened and followed to where she was pointing beside his head. He pulled the pistoltowards him casually, as he sat up in bed and hastily grabbed one of his shirts from the bedpost.

"Yeah, he does." Jake pushed a hand through his unruly locks and eyed up the little girl. "You know they're not for little squirts?"

"I'm not little; I'm almost six years old." Suzy held out her little hand to illustrate.

"Well, when you're…" Jake gently pushed up her other little hand and fanned out the fingers. "…older than this, then you can talk to your daddy about using one. Okay?"

"Okay?" Her little foot kicked his bed post.

Jake grinned, watching the little one pout. "Don't go wishin to be older than you are kiddo. That comes soon enough." He placed his hand over her little head and gave it a rub.

Raised voices began to emanate from downstairs. Jake jumped up and grabbed his pistol, stuffing it unceremoniously in the back of his jeans, before grabbing the youngster's hand.

"It's okay, Sheriff Jake. Stanley's just gettin' yelled at by your mamma. She said he was being naughty."

Jake quickly relaxed when he heard Stanley's booming laughter. "Let's go see what Uncle Stanley has been up to." Jake had a pretty good idea. He scooped up Suzy in his arms and headed for the door. Out in the hall and at the top of the steps, Mimi stood out of sight from those on the stairs. She was wrapped in curlers and a robe, biting her hand desperately trying not to laugh out loud. Quickly, she brought a finger to her lips when she noticed them behind her.

"I was just offering to help my future wife with her dress." They heard Stanley defend from the bottom of the steps.

"With her wedding dress, on her wedding day?" Gail scolded. "It's bad enough the two of you spent the night before your wedding day in the same bed…"

"Stanley, that's **my** bed." Heather exclaimed in disgust.

"I swear!" Stanley proclaimed. "She was drunk and I was…"

"Not helping, Stanley." Heather warned.

From beside him, Jake watched Mimi double over in laughter before yelling down the steps in defense of her, and Stanley's, honor.

"We didn't christen your bed, Heather. Nothing happened." Mimi couldn't stifle her laughter this time. Stanley and Jessica's laughter could be heard resonating from the bottom of the steps. It didn't sound like Gail or Heather was laughing with them.

Mimi stopped laughing long enough to turn and whisper to Jake, with a wink. "That's for someone else to do."

Jake turned crimson and furrowed his brow at the un-bashful bride, then looked to the small audience in his arms. "Mimi!" he cautioned as he shifted Suzy on his hip and headed for the steps, ready to defuse the situation before it went any further.

Midway down the stairs stood his mother, hands on hips, making an exceptional barrier for the groom at the bottom of the steps.

"Come on, best man." Stanley called out to Jake as he came down beside his mother with Suzy in tow. "Back me up here."

Jake just shook his head and lowered the little girl to the steps. She ran off to the kitchen with a skip in her step to join her mother and brother. Jake smiled knowingly at his mom. "Sending a child to do your dirty work?"

"Figured you wouldn't snap at a child."

Jake looked back to Stanley and sighed, folding his arms before him. He wasn't looking to be Stanley's boss on his wedding day. "How about keeping Eric company outside, Stanley?"

Stanley smiled broadly at his friend. Mischief still danced in his eyes, but he understood his fun was over for now. "Sure, Jake." He bowed to the Greens and then smiled apologetically at Gail. "Sorry, Mrs. Green. I'll be good."

"Unlikely." Gail's brow rose. "Now go to the kitchen and grab something to eat for you and Eric. Go on, now."

Jake watched her grin after Stanley and then turned to eye him up like a commanding officer. "And you're not washed up and dressed."

"I was investigating a disturbance in my own house. I'll get right on it, Ma." Jake bent and kissed his mother on the cheek. She grudgingly grinned and walked the rest of the way down the steps.

Before leaving, Jake turned and found Heather watching him from the kitchen doorway. He noticed the blue dress she was wearing; the only dress he had ever seen her in. Unconsciously, he swept a path up her beautifully adorned body with his eyes and returned to her now startled gaze. Without warning, his mind jumped to Mimi's comment about "christening a bed" and felt his entire body warm. Jake watched Heather's eyes turn away and her cheeks turn scarlet. He almost believed that she had just read his mind. _'God, I hope she didn't just read my body.' _

"Jake. Shower." His mother yelled from the kitchen. Jake broke his gaze. When he turned back, Heather's attention had thankfully been diverted by the Taylor's son and daughter now at her side. Heather looked over her shoulder, giving him a nervous smile, before being led away by the children into the next room.

"Yeah, Mom. Shower." Jake yelled back. _'A cold one.'_

Walking up the steps, Jake could hear a chorus of laughter, started by Jimmy's children in the kitchen. It was a welcome sound in the Green household. Before the bombs, the Taylor's, as well as most of the town, found their way to the Green house. Not necessarily because Johnston Green was a casual Mayor who was just as willing to hold a meeting in the family parlor as he was Town Hall, or because Gail Green made the best coffee cake, but because everyone knew that when they came to the Greens' they would find help, or at least the ear of someone who was willing to listen and care. It was still true.

Jake was followed up the rest of the steps by more laughter and the smell of his mother's oven once again working its magic into the air. With the addition of his best friend's upcoming wedding and the vision of Heather in that blue dress, Jake could almost believe that this was to be a perfect day. But Jake knew better than to expect perfect from anything. Days like this, where so much was going on, something was always bound to go wrong. At present, in more possible ways than Jake wanted to fathom.

'_Ahh pessimism, my dear boy. You got that one from your Dad.'_

"Just being realistic." He mumbled at his grandfather's memory while he stepped into the bathroom and closed the door.

'_Life is real enough. I don't have to tell you that. And life is also too short. So seize the day, kiddo.'_

'_Life is too short.' _Jake remembered telling his brother that once. _'Isn't that my line?'_

Jake had stripped down and was now running the water.

'_Borrowed those words from me, sport. I think you've forgotten to live by them, yourself, these days.'_

Jake stepped into the lukewarm water and quickly scrubbed, mulling over what this day could be in his head. He found his mind pushing past all that could go wrong to focus in on one beautiful brunette in a blue dress.

'_Okay, Granddad. Seize the day.'_ He was still wary of finding a perfect day, but maybe, just maybe he'd seize those perfect moments.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Within the next couple of hours the Green house had become a three-ring circus. It was filled, even overflowing, with the controlled chaos that was expected of a wedding party only an hour away from the big event.

The women in the house had taken over the entire upstairs and could be heard clip-clopping across the floor boards above. Stanley had remarked earlier that it sounded like a herd of cattle getting ready to stampede. Eric warned his friend that if he wanted to make it out of this day alive, he better not share that observation with anyone of the fairer sex.

Presently, the groom was spinning Jimmy's son in the front hall. Squeals of delight from both parties punctured the air, layering over the cacophony of sounds from upstairs. Jake sat at the living room window watching Eric walk up to meet with Jimmy as his car rolled into the drive. They would be leaving for downtown soon. All they needed was the go ahead from upstairs.

"Stanley, don't you dare let go of that child." Gail warned as she emerged from the upstairs for the fiftieth time that day. She was answered by more giggles from the child as the man child gave him another spin. Gail skirted past, shaking her head, just missing getting hit by a flying foot.

"Jake, honey. Time to get this show on the road."

Jake smiled warmly up at his mother and squeezed the hand she placed on his shoulder. "Hey, Stanley. Think you can stop playing long enough to get hitched?"

The groom abruptly stopped his playground antics and placed the child back to the floor. Jake believed his friend looked a bit unsettled.

"Stanley?"

Within a heartbeat, Stanley made a bee line for the Green's downstairs washroom and closed the door, followed by the sound of retching and heaving.

"Eww!" Woody exclaimed.

Gail looked from the door to Jake, worried. Jake just smiled. "I was wondering when it was going to hit him."

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

By the time the party had made it downtown, Bailey's looked fit to burst with patrons and wedding guests alike, and Town Hall's front courtyard was filled with well wishers. As soon as Jake pulled the Roadrunner up to the side entrance of Town Hall, his mother quickly ushered the Bride and Heather into the building. Jimmy and the rest of the ladies were already inside waiting and Eric was keeping an eye on Stanley at the front of the building till Jake got there.

Within thirty minutes, four dress malfunctions, three bathroom trips for an anxious flower girl and a missing wedding ring scare, the wedding ceremony of Stanley Richmond and Mimi Clark was ready to begin.

"Stanley? Stanley?" Jake looked to his friend when he didn't get an answer. Both men now stood at the garland adorned steps of Town Hall, waiting with the preacher, God, and half of Jericho, on the bride to make her appearance. Jake wasn't sure for how long, but Stanley had appeared to have stopped breathing.

"Stanley, breathe or you're gonna drop over on your wedding day." Jake heard a whoosh of air come out of his friend and the blonde's pigment returned to a shade less blue.

"I'm good," Stanley mumbled to Jake. 'I'm good' had been the extent of Stanley's responses to any of Jake's, or anyone else's, questions since they left the house.

"Yeah." Jake smiled up to his friend when he heard the front doors open. "You're about to become a whole lot better." Jake placed his hands on Stanley's shoulders and turned him around. Jake watched his friend's features grow into a smile that could have lit the square. Stanley's radiant bride was now making her way towards them. Mimi's silky dress billowed in the breeze that had picked up in the square. Her long, dark tresses framed her beaming face and her ruby red lips parted into a smile as soon as she stopped in front of her future husband.

Stanley pulled from his stunned reverie and looked down at his future wife's feet when he heard a familiar sound. His eyes became warm, crinkling at the edges with his smile. "Like the boots, city girl." Her gesture was not missed by him.

Mimi's eyes sparkled as she looked over her future husband from head to toe. "Nice suit, country boy. You clean up good. GQ even." With nothing but certainty in their hearts, the two reached out to one another and clasped hands. And then the ceremony began.

Jake basked in the glow that flowed from his friends before him. His eyes drifted to the other side of the steps in search of the one person he wanted to share the moment with. Heather's eyes quickly met Jake's from her spot at the lower end of the steps.

Round and blue, he could see his world shining back at him in her stare. His mind drifted over every other moment her look alone gave him more than he could have asked. When both their days were long and exhausting and she would just smile his way and he'd find the strength to do even more. That day when she looked at him and told him, with no doubt in her clear eyes that he was meant to be Jericho's protector, Jericho's Sheriff. He remembered the strength she gave him at his father's funeral, by just looking to him and holding his eye. Before that, the way her eyes met his, the day she returned from the dead and came back to Jericho; that day Jake had felt as if it was he who had been brought back to life.

In his mind he saw those blue eyes peer up to him in a rear view mirror on a school bus giving him encouragement or looking down to him from steps, touching him, telling him everything was going to be alright when he couldn't believe it himself. And the first night they met and he saved the little girl Stacy, his first act of contrition. That night she looked at him and he became a hero.

"Jake, the ring?" Stanley whispered to him. Jake pulled from his thoughts and Heather's eyes, his heart beating quickly as he rummaged through his pockets for the bride's ring.

"Sorry." Jake now placed the ring in his friends hand and received a relieved smile from the bride. All his attention was now back on the moment at hand.

Without skipping a beat, the preacher continued to weave the spell of traditional words of matrimony around the couple before him, formalizing the union that had already solidified between the lovers long before this day. And then…

"…with the power invested in me, I now pronounce you man and wife. Now son, you better kiss that bride of yours."

"Yes sir." Stanley grinned.

"Come here, lover boy." Mimi laughed as Stanley swept her against him and into the air, consuming her with their first kiss as husband and wife.

Applause broke out all across the square. Before the couple pulled apart, and on Heather's cue, all of the lights in the square and around Bailey's were turned on. Sounds of awe and laughter were heard throughout the crowd. The light show would only grow more brilliant as the sun set on the evening to come.

"May I present Mr. and Mrs. Stanley Richmond." The crowd again broke into applause.

Jake felt pride swell his heart. He looked to his newlywed friends, as they basked in their moment. The couple smiled and thanked all those around them. Mimi mouthed 'Thank you' to Heather, for her gift from Heather and her crew. Once more, Jake caught Heather's eyes and the captivating smile that now glowed in them.

'_Perfect moments...' _

And then the music began to play…

**TBC.**

(NEXT. Second half of the Wedding evening to come. Dedicated to you shippers out in Jericho land.)


	16. Chapter 16

**Disclaimer: **Don't own Jericho or its characters. They are not my creation. But this story line is my own.

**Authors Note:** I felt actually nervous, writing this chapter. I wanted it to go well and I'm still not 100 sure I did what I set out to do. Oh well, I had to let the chapter loose sometime and I'm done with tinkering. I want to give a big thanks to JT and Midnight, again. You guys were wonderful sounding boards and beta. What correct information about weather I used and didn't warp for creative purposes, I thank them for. And thanks for the help with the J/H scenes. The song for our couple is Garth Brooks, 'When You Come Back to Me Again.' http://video. JT found the original video that went with the song. Nice video for the movie 'Frequency', but if you want to get into an H/J state of mind; ya better just listen and not watch. Also thanks for Heather's quote at the end; it's a shortened version of Archimedes.

Tell me what you think. What did and didn't work. It will only make the next chapter better.

**Warning:** Extreme mushiness, possible flying cows, some adult language…

**Chapter Fifteen: Watershed**

by Ann Pendragon

A few of Jericho's more musically inclined, two of which worked on the Richmond farm, had decided that Bailey's jukebox wasn't going to cut it for their friend and employer's big day. Tonight, the music machine was going to play second fiddle to the newly gathered Jericho's Banjo Banger's Band

Presently, the fiddle and banjo in 'Cowboy Take Me Away' were chasing the waltzing couples around the dance area in the square. Evening was falling quicker than usual, but few noticed under the canopy of assorted lights and lanterns that crisscrossed over the square, and hung from every swaying tree and light post. Children ran through the dancers and laughter flowed as freely as the moonshine and humble tidbits set up for the guest's consumption. People would look back on that night, and agree it had been one hell of a party.

Jake watched the joyous moment beside his brother and Deputy Tommy Smith, the youngest of Jericho's finest and an ex- refugee, not really seeing the moment before him. Presently, his pessimism towards perfect days was being supported.

"…if he's escaped, there are only one of two places he would go tonight." Eric theorized. "He's at his house on the south side or he's somewhere around this party."

Carl Mackey had outwitted the unaware volunteer keeping watch over him at Jericho's clinic earlier this evening and was presently MIA somewhere in the town. Jake agreed with Eric's assessment of Carl still being around. Carl was beyond a doubt certifiable, but he had enough sense to stay in the relative safety of the town limits.

"Didn't the clinic still have him restrained?" Jake questioned the young deputy.

"That's just it, he was! Something really had him spooked all morning and they were going to further restrain him, because of the commotion he was causing in the clinic with some of the other patients. Howling about his ghosts and coming evil this and that…"

"Who got the call?"

"Bill. He's out with a couple of the guys from the clinic, looking for him."

Jake nodded his head in unexpected approval. _'Good Bill.' _The same Bill he had to order to take Carl to the clinic last night.

"Sheriff, we also got another weather report from Fort Liberty. Said that large front is still coming, but so far no twister sightings to report."

'_Just perfect.'_ Jake wasn't happy about it, but he wasn't really surprised. He looked out to the dimming southwestern corner of the sky and back to the square of party goers. It looked like the reception would be an inside affair before the night was over.

"I want you to go back to the office and sit on the radio for the rest of the night. Any changes, any upgrades in the storm, let me, Deputy Taylor, or my brother know immediately. Is that clear?"

"Yes, sir." The young deputy answered his Sheriff quickly.

"And New Bern?" Jake asked, while his eyes traveled around the square and into the darker corners.

"No, sir, no change. Some of their search parties are now about twenty miles out from Jericho."

Jake nodded his head and leveled his eyes at the deputy. "When Russell's men get to our border patrol, have our guys check in, okay"

"Yes, sir." Once again the younger man dutifully nodded his head in acknowledgement.

"Good job, Tommy. Get going." Jake placed a hand on his hip, brushing the other over his lips in thought, while he watched the deputy jog through the crowd and out of the square. That's when he saw Heather again. Or rather the swirl of her blue dress as one the younger Grease Monkeys swung her across the floor, eliciting a giggle from her. Jake felt his jaw clench and then release. He didn't like it, not one bit.

Still at his brother's side, Eric noticed Jake's silent display and smiled. "Jake. Ask her to dance."

Before Jake could respond, the song ended and the band leader took the center of the old collapsible stage Town Hall used for special events and election years. Gail was waving her boys to her side.

"Honey, its time for your speech…" Gail's eyes grew wide when Jake's grew even wider. "Oh, Jake. You didn't?" his mother scolded. "I thought that after last time…"

Jake scowled when his brother started to chuckle over the irony of the moment. "Sorry, brother, don't have anything written for you this time."

"Mom…" Jake was about to tell both of them he had it covered, knowing full well he didn't have a clue, but was interrupted by the tapping of glass up on the stage.

"Okay, folks. We're gonna need our best man to come on up here and give us a toast. Come on, Sheriff, front and center."

Jake took a steadying breath and headed for the stage, not bothering to look back at his family. He didn't need any more of their "support". Cutting his way through the crowd, Jake grabbed a drink from the main table and swallowed half of its contents in one gulp, before jumping up to the stage. He cleared his throat and looked out over the waiting crowd and then finally to Stanley. He cleared his throat once more and did what came natural to Jake Green. He winged it.

"Stanley Eugene Richmond. The dirt I have on you." Jake found his smile. "Hell, half that dirt, I helped you dig."

The crowd laughed. Stanley pointed his finger at his best friend and smiled. "That you did, buddy."

Jake's broad smile now softened, watching Mimi grab Stanley's finger and pull him into a quick kiss.

"But I'm not going to dish it tonight. I'll save that for your fiftieth anniversary." The bride and groom beamed at one another and then up to Jake on the stage. As the crowd ah-ed, Jake looked down to his mother in the audience and saw her smile dim a little. He knew she was thinking of his father right now and the anniversaries they had shared. Jake gave her a warm smile and a gentle raise of his glass; love and understanding glowing in his eyes. He watched her nod her head and return his sentiment, and Jake continued on.

"Tonight-tonight I'm just happy for my best friend..." Jake's eyes scanned the crowd once more and found his inspiration at the far edge of the stage. His eyes warmed when she cautiously returned his gaze. "…for he found love and had the courage to make it his own."

"To Stanley, for finding a lifetime of love with a wonderful woman, a partner…" Jake smiled and then looked back to the bride and groom. "No other man is more deserving of that miracle or, for those of you who know Mimi, being yelled at by said woman for the rest of his unnatural life."

"Hey!" Mimi laughed along with the now howling crowd. Stanley could only nod his head in agreement and get swatted for it.

"To Stanley and Mimi, for inspiring us all to find our own happiness." Through the sea of raised glasses and cheer, Jake and Heather found one another's eyes once more. "To Stanley and Mimi Richmond."

The band began to play again. Stanley walked up to his best friend before he could leave the stage and ensnared him in one of his infamous bear hugs that lifted him into the air. "Man, you had me wondering it you were going to spill about that cross dresser in Topeka."

"Any louder, Stanley, and you'll do it for me." Jake clapped his friend's back and looked out over the crowd, trying to reacquire his target.

"Jake, I think it's time for my dance." Mimi sidled up beside the men and slipped her arm around Jake's.

"Got two left feet, Mimi…"

"Got protective footwear." Mimi kicked out one of her boots. "So let's get going, armed, dark and handsome." Mimi winked at her new husband while she pulled her dance partner to the center of the floor. Stanley grinned and headed off into the crowd.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Heather found her feet moving, taking her back into the crowd and away from the edge of the stage. She felt herself running away again and cursed herself for the act of cowardice. She had fled to the refreshment table, not noticing her pursuer quickly coming up behind her.

"Hey, Teach, how about a dance for the groom?"

Startled, Heather turned into Stanley, nearly spilling her drink on his shoes.

"Whoa, girl." Stanley was now grinning like a Cheshire cat. "A simple no would have done it."

"Oh, Stanley. I am so sorry…"

"No problem." His smile widened. "So how about that dance? You did just try to drown me." Stanley bent closer to Heather's side, batting his lashes for effect. "Pretty, pretty please?"

Heather had no choice but to smile. She offered her hand and allowed her friend to steer her back into the crowd.

As they began their dance, Heather became confused by the barrage of ramblings her dance partner was feeding into her ear.

"Friend, brother, drunken fool, cowboy, flyboy, family man…"

Halfway through his list of titles, Heather began to understand.

"…hot head, town rebel without a clue, and town hero with a cause, soldier, peacemaker, leader, and tonight, my best man." Stanley finished his cumbersome list with a deep sigh, knowing he could have added more titles if he had the time.

"I've seen him be all those things and I love and respect the guy, but I'll be the first to say he's not the brightest sometimes," Stanley admitted. "I just want to see him happy, and I know you're what makes him happy. So whatever happens, give the big dummy a chance, okay?"

Heather was taken aback by Stanley's unorthodox, but touching, support of his best friend.

"I will." She spoke in earnest to Stanley's request, not sure what else she could say in that moment that would suffice. It seemed to be enough for her dance partner, because he gave her a celebratory smile and sped up their spin across the dance floor.

"You're a good friend, Stanley."

"Hey, I do what I can…" Stanley's head snapped up to look across the other people around them when the music ended. Heather tried to stand on her tiptoes to see what had garnered his attention, but found herself being quickly swept in the other direction in Stanley's insistent embrace.

"All right, guys." Mary yelled out over the crowd. "The band's going to take a breather while we enjoy a jukebox request. If you all will just hold tight, we'll get it going."

Before Heather could turn from Stanley, he had strategically brought them face to face with the best man and the bride. By the startled look on Jake's face and the conspiring grin on Mimi's, this had been a coordinated effort.

"I think you've got my wife, Jake. Trade you my girl for yours?"

Mimi smiled at Jake and then winked at Heather, taking her husband's hand.

"Geronimo, buddy." Stanley whispered in Jake's ear and then followed his wife off the dance floor, leaving Jake and Heather where they stood.

"All right, as requested," Mary announced over the noisy din of the crowd. "This dedication goes out to—sorry—it's a dedication from…Mom."

Jake quickly tried to find the song's dedicator through the crowd, but turned back to his silent companion when the first few notes of Garth Brooks' 'When You Come Back to Me Again', drifted out into the evening air and mixed with the rumbles of thunder in the nearing distance. The wind had kicked up again, molding the fabric of Heather's dress across her body, brushing her hair over her face in gentle wisps. All the while she stood completely still before him, waiting against the backdrop of the coming storm. Till the day he died, Jake knew he would always remember just how beautiful, how vulnerable she had looked in that moment. _'Seize the moment.'_

Jake took a step forward, his heart slamming in his chest, and offered her his hand. "Dance with me, Heather." His request whispered out to her like a prayer. He would have given her anything, done anything to have her take his hand. And then she did.

He let go of the breath he didn't know he was holding when he felt her delicate fingers entwine with his own. He looked down to their joined hands and then into her eyes. He knew she was afraid, he saw it when she looked back at him. But she was with him now, and she was taking this jump too.

_There's a ship out_

_On the ocean_

_At the mercy of the sea._

_It's been tossed about_

_Lost and broken_

_Wandering aimlessly_

_And God somehow_

_You know that ship is me._

Together, they walked through the sea of couples as they dipped and swayed under the canopy of twinkling lights and darkening sky, finding some seclusion in the shadows at the edge of the square. Gently, he slid his hand to the small of her back and pulled their joined hands to his pounding heart. Slowly, they fell into step…

_Cause there's a lighthouse_

_In the harbor_

_Shining faithfully_

_Pouring it's light out_

_Across the water_

_For this sinking soul to see._

_That someone out there_

_Still believes in me._

_On a prayer, in a song_

_I hear your voice and_

_It keeps me hanging on._

_Raining down_

_Against the wind_

_I'm reaching out_

_Till we reach the circles end_

_When you come back to me again._

With each note of the song, their bodies continued to drift closer; pulled to one another by the attraction they both had fought for so long. Jake had every intention of being careful with the woman in his arms, but with each brush of her body against his own, those intentions fell further and further away.

_There's a moment_

_We all come to_

_In our own time_

_And in our own space._

_Where all that we've done_

_We can undo_

_If our hearts in the right place._

"Heather…"

She felt her name vibrate from his chest where her cheek now rested, and go through her body, making it tremble. He was looking down at her now. Without even looking up, she felt his midnight colored eyes calling to her. She had never known anyone like him; a man whose eyes spoke louder than most men's loudest roars. She had but to answer…

"Yes."

The warmth of her breath against his neck when she answered, the breaking sound of her voice when she spoke, the smell of her that now teased him when his nose dipped down to her hair and breathed, and the feel of her now in his arms; all these things triggered the inevitable inside of him. Jake pulled her body into his own, eliciting a small cry from Heather. Both their bodies had now begun to shake.

"Heather," he tried again. "Heather, I need to tell you…" Speaking, let alone breathing, was becoming hard for him. And then she finally looked up to him with her wide eyes, now a shimmering liquid blue…

"I need to tell you this…" Then he kissed her.

He had wanted to tell her first, but showing her just how much he needed her felt so damn good. Besides, not kissing her then and there would have been like holding back the waves of the ocean. Jake was tired of trying to do the impossible, so he gave up, and gave into his heart.

He felt her hands twist into his shirt and he pulled the curves of her even closer against his body, drawing her further into a kiss that grew in desire. He didn't want her to leave his arms tonight with any doubt, any misunderstanding, as to what this moment, what she meant to him. Heather moaned for breath against him and he grudgingly released her lips, but not his hold on her. She leaned her forehead against his own and drew in a ragged breath, while he gently began to smooth his hand up and down her back in long adoring strokes.

"Wow." She softly exclaimed against him. Talk felt overrated at that point, especially with each brush of his hand continuing the havoc Jake Green seemed to have on her senses.

Jake bit his lip, twisting it into a lopsided grin, reveling in her response to him. _'My Heather.' _

_And again I see_

_My yesterdays in front of me_

_Unfolding like a mystery_

_You're changing all that is_

_And used to be._

Jake closed his eyes and smoothed his face against the soft skin of her cheek, enjoying each new sensation being close to her offered him. And then he brushed his lips against hers once more. The kiss was slow this time, tender. It felt even better, because it was a kiss returned. But then the sound of clanking glass and cat calls washed over them like cold water. Stunned, they broke from the spell they had wound around each other and were faced with reality and their audience—half of Jericho.

Heather colored and buried her face in his shirt. Jake grabbed one of her shaky hands, trying to give little notice of their supporters while looking around the square for a place to carry out the rest of their moment in privacy. Out past the crowd, Jake led them to a spot where the strings of lights and prying eyes did not reach and immediately enveloped her in his arms once more.

"I love you, Heather." The words seemed so heartbreakingly simple now. "I need you and I should have told you…"

"Jake..." she pleaded.

He quickly brushed a kiss across her lips, taking her words away. "Please, babe. I'm not done." He leveled his forehead to her own and swallowed hard, digging deep for the things that he needed her to hear.

"I've spent my entire life not knowing what I wanted. Doing things I didn't give a damn about the consequences of, while being someone I didn't even like. I meant what I said the night of my father's wake, I was a screw-up." Jake looked away a moment and cleared his throat.

"But you helped change all of that. By just being you and being in my life, you make me want things I never thought I could have, do things I didn't think I was capable of. You look at me with that smile of yours and I feel….good." He had wanted a better word, a bigger word for what she made him feel, but it summed up the truth. "I never felt like a good man, Heather. Not till I met you."

The sincerity of his admission overwhelmed her, even more than his kisses had left her breathless. She couldn't find words to give him.

"I know I don't deserve your love…"

'_Don't deserve __**my **__love?'_ Heather searched Jake's pleading eyes and could see how completely his words owned him and it tore at her. Didn't he realize that all she ever wanted was him? That it was she who didn't feel like she deserved **his** love? Yes, he should have spoken to her after that first kiss. But that was small compared to everything else that had happened—Constantino, New Bern, her months away, or even the fact that she was just…Heather the quirky little school teacher turned Grease Monkey; who had never been anyone's first choice for anything, let alone love. And he believed it was him who was not worthy?

Heather felt her head spinning. This amazing man, her friend and hero, held her and had kissed her, telling her he loved her and believed himself not worthy of **her**? How could he think so little of himself when the rest of the world that mattered, saw him as the person they most wanted to be like? The one person they would trust with their very lives, and did every day? Heather took a steadying breath while he continued his plea. She was going to show him exactly what he deserved….

"…but I just want the chance to make you hap…mmmftt!" Jake didn't get the chance to finish his sentence. Heather made it unnecessary when she pulled him down to her and captured his lips in a full bodied kiss. Echoes of their first kiss crossed Jake's mind, as he returned her answer to his prayers. The sweetness and warmth she had put into that first desperate kiss could still be felt, but now there was no mistaking the feeling of her love. Love he had so ignorantly run from then.

Heather began to cry and laugh in between their continued kisses. "I love you too, Jake. I always have." She confessed freely now. Jake's admission gave her that courage.

Jake caught her face in his hands and wiped away her tears with the pads of his thumbs. It was his turn to be speechless, so he just continued to hold her.

"You make me happy." She laughed a little when Jake tenderly brushed away new tears. "Maybe the crying isn't the best indicator?"

Jake silently laughed with her, shaking his head at the funny, beautiful, amazing woman in his arms. _'She loved me all along. She still loves me?'_ He knew—no, he was damn certain now—he didn't deserve her.

"But…" Heather cautioned. "If you really want to make me happier…" She placed her hand on his cheek. "You'll keep kissing me."

He gave her a crooked smile that seemed to glow in the shadows. "As you wish." And then he claimed her lips once more.

Out over the horizon, lighting spread out like skeletal fingers across a chalk board, the sound of thunder had been rolling in closer and closer after each strike. The western winds whipped up around the lovers and then the rain began to fall. Still holding her tight, Jake pulled from their kiss and closed his eyes, while raising his head up into the rain. Heather watched the water course down the lines of his handsome face and fell for him just a little bit more.

"I think we're gonna be soaked." She smiled.

Jake smiled into the rain and then down to her. "You think?" And then he pulled her up off the ground and began to shake the wet tendril of his hair all over her, provoking a string of giggles from Heather.

Their fun was ended quickly with a loud bang. One of the collapsible tables by the stage had gone down with the rush of party guests running for shelter from the rain.

"Shit!" Jake had been so caught up in the moment he forgot what possible repercussions the coming storm had to offer. Hell—he had forgotten about everything around him, but Heather. He quickly grabbed her hand as they both bolted out into the square to help with the exodus out of the rain. Most of the guest had already headed for cover and the band and jukebox were presently being pushed unceremoniously into an already packed Bailey's. A few folks, including Jake's mother and Mrs. Taylor, were trying to save some of the reception food.

"Mom, let me get that."

Gail looked from the pile of bowls in her hands to her soaked son and Heather, side by side. She had watched the outcome of her and Mimi's simple plan earlier, and would still be doing a jig right now if the rain wasn't trying to drown her. Gail pushed the bowls into her son's arms and grabbed up more of the food.

"Oh, thank God. Now let's get into the bar." Gail already had her free arm around Heather as they headed for Bailey's. The rain was coming down in sheets before they could blink.

"Look." Heather pointed to the corner of the muddy square. Stanley and Mimi were still out in the rain, doing a fairly impressive waltz in the horrid weather. Heather laughed and Jake grinned. Gail could only shake her head, while trying to get her family to shelter.

"A match made in heaven, those two." Gail yelled over the downpour, "Come on, you two, inside." She pushed Heather and Jake forward. "Mr. and Mrs. Richmond, do not tempt nature. Get inside this instant."

The pair heard her yell, and smiled insanely at one another just as a string of lights above burst, showering them with sparks. The couple took the hint and raced out of the square, sliding as they ran. Just as they all made it into the close quarters of Bailey's doorway, everything stopped outside.

Jake gave Stanley the bowls he had been carrying and stepped back out the door, Heather close behind. Only the creak of tree branches and the sounds from inside Bailey's could be heard. The lights in the square no longer dipped and swayed, but had slowed close to still in the eerie silence around them, spiting out intermittent sparks into the mud. They both looked up to the sky. Jake felt his ears pop and looked to Heather. She noticed it too. The energy in the air around them had changed, the barometric pressure had dropped.

"Sheriff. SHERIFF." Jake jerked around in the direction of Town Hall. Deputy Smith was running at breakneck speed towards them, nearly taking a spill in the muddy square. "Sheriff, we have a tornado watch in effect, Fort Liberty just posted."

By this time, Eric, Gray, and Jimmy had made it to Jake's side. Jake was about to start spitting out orders when the wind kicked back up in the square, picking up the now flickering lights back into the air and dropping them on their strings. Just as the western sky lit up once more before them, Jake caught sight of its sickening greenish glow. _'This is bad. Oh, hell this is bad.' _

"Shhht." The sound of the deputy's radio crackled from the interference of the coming storm, making the young deputy and Heather jump.

"Deputy Smith, this is Sara. Tommy, you there? The watch is now a warning. I repeat. The watch has now been upgraded to a warning. Tell the Sheriff Fort Liberty says the radio is full of people calling in storm cells all over the place. Small twisters have been reported in the south, but based on the number of reports; they're expecting more F1's, maybe big as F3. The storm is still gathering over the Rockies and will only get bigger…"

Jake grabbed the radio from the young deputy swiftly, his mind already flying two steps ahead. "Sara, start the sirens. This is Jake" he added as an afterthought. "Get them going so the rest of the town and elsewhere can hear it."

"Yes, sir. Just did."

"I'm sending Tommy back to Town Hall, with the folks from the party." Jake continued, while waving over Eric and Jimmy to his side. The rain had begun to fall around them again. "I want you to help him get the shelter open when he gets there. Call New Bern. Make sure they get word of the storm. They have men just outside the city limits by now. I'm going to have Jimmy warn our guys on patrol and have them take cover."

"Jake."

He felt someone tugging on his arm, but continued. "I'm heading for the clinic shelter…"

"JAKE!"

"WHAT!" Jake spun around on Heather, but she didn't blink, just quickly responded.

"Jake, the sirens—I don't hear them!"

Jake looked at her questioningly through the pouring rain. As soon as the sirens were switched on, they were supposed to sound immediately.

"Sara, where are those sirens?"

"I turned them—oh, God, the light isn't lit. Everything is plugged in?"

"Jake, it has to be the sirens themselves," Heather exclaimed. "But they should work. We checked them a few days ago..."

Jake watched her eyes widen and could actually see her mind racing. He felt his stomach drop. "Heather…" he warned. But he was too late. She had already sprinted from his side and was now running in the direction of the town garage where the main siren tower was erected.

"HEATHER!" Jake screamed after her. "Damn it." Jake growled. "Jimmy, get to the clinic—JIMMY!

"Ye—Yes, Boss."

His right hand man looked shaky, staring up at the dark swirling sky, and Jake needed to go after Heather.

"Jimmy." Jake grabbed his arm in a crushing grip, forcing Jimmy to look at him. "The storm is coming whether we like it or not. Go to the clinic and help Kenchy get everyone below. Alert our men on the way."

Jimmy firmly nodded his head and took off at a run. He grabbed up his daughter and yelled for his wife and son to follow. In a few moments' time, they sped out of the square in his Jeep Cherokee and down the road towards the clinic, skirting debris along the way.

"ERIC." Jake had already begun to run in the direction Heather took. "Tell Mom Heather and I will be right back. And get to the shelter!"

Eric watched his brother disappear into the shadows, wondering why it was always him telling their mother that her other son was out trying to commit a valiant suicide. _'And now he has a partner.'_

"Okay people, let's go!"

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Past Town Hall and down the backside of Main Street, Jake bolted towards the township garage and Heather. _'She's going to be the death of me.' _

Jake overshot the garage entrance, but grabbed the door frame and ran into the repair bay. "HEATHER." Jake yelled when he saw no sign of her. Then he heard a slam and a clatter from the far end of the building. "HEATHER?"

"JAKE!"

He saw the blue of her dress whip outside the open doors of the back half of the building, through the pounding rain. Jake ran through the garage and then out the back, to the small building and the siren tower behind it. He found Heather inside, trying to move a large storage locker off the crushed power box for the warning sirens and back on its feet. The room around her looked like some sort of storm had already occurred within the confines of the four cramped walls.

"What the hell happened in here?"

"I don't know, but could you lend a hand?"

Jake jumped to her side and steadied the lockers, while they began to rock it back onto its base. "What in the hell where you thinking, running off like that?" he yelled.

"We need the siren to warn the rest of Jericho. I was the only one standing there who can fix it, so tag, I'm it."

Heather continued to rock the locker and Jake gave it one more push to the back wall. "I thought you liked danger," She yelled over her shoulder as she pried open the crushed control box.

'_God, she's actually smiling. I am a dead man.'_ Jake watched her turn off the power to the box and began to dig in, moving around some displaced wires and screwing them back into place with the screwdriver she must have grabbed from the garage before he came.

"I told you I didn't, and you better stop taking pages from my book for both our sakes." He warned. Heather smiled over her shoulder at him. Jake didn't return it.

Finally, Heather's nimble fingers pulled out of the box and turned on the power. "Now I just need to go to the base of the steps and flip the main switch…" Heather ran to the steps just a few feet outside the back of the little shack and pulled the switch, sending out Jericho's needed warning and drowning out half of her scream.

In a heart beat, Jake was at her side, pistol drawn from under his jacket. What welcomed him was the dead body of Carl Mackey sprawled out in the rain. Jake knew Carl was gone just by looking at him. Eyes wide open, staring out into nothing. Jake reached out to Jericho's deceased crazy man and saw his head flop over like a rag doll. "Broken neck." He had to yell over the sirens, wind and rain.

"Maybe he fell from the steps?" Heather yelled as they backed back into the shack.

"Maybe. But why was he here in the first place?" A thunder clap pulled their attention from Carl and reminded them of their situation. Jake latched his hand around Heather's and pulled her away from the door when he saw a trashcan bounce by the tower.

"Heather, we have to get the hell out of here—NOW!"

On cue, the wind howled out a warning and lightning struck down on the tree behind the shack, cracking it in two and sending half through the roof of the building. Jake had no time to yell, he pushed Heather through the door towards the garage, just as the large branch came down on the shack's storage lockers, toppling them on Jake and pinning him. Jake yelled out in pain, struggling under the heavy mass while Heather stumbled back through the door, still disoriented by the proximity of the lightning strike. She crawled over the fallen debris to his side and immediately tried to free him, while the sirens continued to blare uninterrupted over them.

"Jake…"

Jake tried to push the weight off his body, with no luck and punched the metal. "GO, HEATHER! Get the hell out of here! Get to the shelter. Come back for me after the storm has passed."

"I'm not leaving you." She kept trying to yank at the metal. "We have to get you out of this…"

"Damn it, Heather, listen to me." Jake grabbed at her straining fingers, his plea now desperate. "Please go. Get to safety. You're not strong enough to do this…"

"No, I'm not." Heather agreed then ran from the shack.

'_Heather?'_

Seconds later, she came back through the door dragging an immense pry bar from the garage. She began to clumsily place it over the fallen beam from the roof and under the lockers by Jake's body, fighting her dress and the weight of the pry bar, while still in her heels.

"I'm not strong enough, but I'm smart enough." She yelled out over the deafening noise around them. "Give me a lever and I will move the world," she quoted while she worked.

Jake could have laughed if he wasn't so grateful and scared right then. He grabbed the edge of the pry bar and attempted to help her navigate it further under the lockers that bit into his hip and leg. "When you throw your weight on it, I'll pull myself out."

Heather nodded her head. She was scared but ready.

"ON THREE." He yelled as he reached across the cement and grabbed the floor grate for leverage. "ONE…TWO…THREE."

Heather threw all her weight onto the bar and Jake pulled and pushed his way out from under the metal with a groan. Now clinging to one another, they looked up through the missing part of the building and could see what could only be described as hell looking to dance across the earth. Jake pulled himself up on the fallen lockers and she moved under his shoulder to help him limp out of the building, and out into the now falling hail. Halfway to Town Hall, the increasing winds and rain made running even more difficult, but they finally made it to the building's front steps and raced up them in a mad dash to the doors. Inside, they slid across the marble and down the hall. The angry sounds of Mother Nature, following them to the steps that led to the shelter's reinforced doors.

"Open up!" Jake took the side of his fist to the metal door. His adrenaline wasn't enough now to drown out the pain in his leg and side. It was just Heather and pure will keeping him standing.

With a creak, the door mercifully opened and the couple stumbled in, still clutching on to one another as if their life depended on it. The door slammed shut and the bolt fell back down into place, muffling the rumble of hell unleashed, along with the siren's wail.

**TBC**


	17. Chapter 17

**Disclaimer:** Yep, don't own Jericho or its character's, but the story line is mine along with the words I give them.

**Authors Note:** Well, not sure how this will go, but I enjoyed writing it and for those of you who know the kind of scenes I'm starting to enjoy that mean's characters in peril or worse….BUT I have some humor and mush on hand so on with the show. Also, big thanks to JT and Midnight again for their wonderful help (i.e. tech support for windmills, etc, character behavior, G and S, and sounding boards.

**Warning:** Language, character death and a TBC that you may kill me for.

**Chapter Sixteen: Something Wicked This Way Comes**

by Ann Pendragon

"Man, do you **not** like walking?"

Jake wearily eyed Stanley and then grimaced when Jessica delved her fingers into the deepest wound on his leg, and his mother applied antiseptic to the cut on the back of his head in unison.

"Oww! Ma!" he hissed.

"Hold still, Jake." Gail ordered her first born and continued her work. "Good Lord, he's going to need stitches here, too. Must have been when he hit the ground. Did he loose consciousness, Heather?"

"No—I don't think so. I got back to him less than a minute after the lockers fell…"

"I don't have a concussion." Jake tried to turn and face his mother but his head was roughly pushed back straight. "And I don't have a bruised hip, either," he directed at Jessica. "I'd know. Those hurt like a son-of-a-bitch and this isn't even close."

Jake could have told them he had had worse, but he bit his tongue. Now was not the time to share his medical history from the last six years. He inhaled deeply, steadying himself, and clutched the hand in his; greedily taking its comfort. When his mother let go of his head to go get the suture kit, he looked down at Heather's unusually quiet form beside him on the cot. She was still staring woefully at his cut up leg.

"Hey." he squeezed her hand a little tighter and was caught by the worry on her face when he finally directed her eyes away from his injuries. A chatty worried Heather, he was used to. A quiet worried Heather worried him. "I'm going to be fine, thanks to you. So are a lot of other folks; who would be having a worse day if those sirens hadn't warned them."

Heather gave him a wan smile and nodded her head. She knew he was right, but it still didn't stop her from feeling a little bit responsible, and a whole lot scared right then. She really hadn't thought of the danger when she raced off to fix the sirens. Not until Jessica and Gail cut open Jake's slacks and pulled up his shirt and she saw the blood—his blood—did the reality hit her in the gut. _'Jake could have been killed!'_

She pulled Jake's hand to her lips and then held it tighter in her lap. "I know, just didn't want anything to happen to you, because of me."

"And it would have been better if it was you who got hurt?" Jake said a little angrily. "I don't think so." The two eyed one another, realizing this was to be the first of their disagreements as a couple.

"Jake. Third time is not the charm." Stanley chimed back in before the couple could continue. "I'm gonna have to start calling you Sheriff Gimpy Green." Stanley mused.

"Ha. Ha." Jake humored his friend. He knew Stanley was scared like everyone else around them in the packed and noisy shelter and nothing could be done right then, but to stay sane while they waited out the storm. So Jake understood everyone would be dealing with their fear as best they could, but…

"I mean, if you were a cat, you'd be…" Stanley hesitated to say what other 'Jake' moments he was privy to and concluded. "Well, you'd be dead!"

…some people's ways of dealing with fear did not mix well with other people's ways of dealing with fear.

"Stanley!" Mimi warned.

Jake felt Heather's hand tighten even more on his own as he tilted his head around just in time to watch his mother shoot Stanley a disdainful glare worthy of the storm wreaking havoc outside. He was fairly certain his mother's own fears had eaten away at her tolerance and Stanley had stepped onto dangerous ground.

"Jake! Heather!" Eric called out as he and Mary pushed their way through the crowd towards them. Stanley was given a temporary reprieve.

"Good to see you two in one piece." Mary reached for Heather's shoulder and then sat with Mimi and Stanley on the cot facing them.

"Once you guys got the sirens going, the shelter began to fill." Eric nodded towards the shelter's storm door as he came to stand behind their mother. "Last word we received from Jimmy, he was getting the same at the clinic."

"Did Jimmy contact all our men in the field? Did Sara get New Bern…?" Jake started to struggle in his spot, wishing to jump back into Sheriff Mode, but was firmly pulled down by three pairs of female hands.

"Jake. Down!" They yelled in chorus.

Jake settled and Eric shook his head at his brother's eagerness to leave the women's care. Green men made the worst patients, and Jake was notoriously bad.

"Yes on both fronts. They received warning. Hopefully they'll be able to check in when the storm dies dow…." Eric looked over his mother's shoulder as he came closer to his brother and caught sight of his injuries. "Jesus, Jake. Again?"

"It's not as bad as it loo…" But Jake didn't get to finish.

"THAT'S IT!" Gail yelled over the din of the crowd and closed her eyes. "All of you, except these two," she pointed at Jake and Heather, "Go! Now!

Jessica flinched, but continued her work on Jake. Everyone else, including half their neighbors on that side of the shelter who had been watching the going on's of the Sheriff and his family, tucked tail and began to shuffle to other spots in the limited space.

"My husband is going to help me and my sister-in-law pass around water bottles," Mimi respectfully nodded to Gail. "We are so happy the two of you are okay **and **together." Mimi smiled warmly at the couple, while she roughly tugged at her wayward spouse's arm. "Come along Stanley." Stanley gave Jake a thumb up as he was dragged away.

"Us too, brother." Eric touched Jake's shoulder firmly and then looked at Heather. "If my brother is going to continue running off to save the day, I'm glad he found a partner to do it with, someone smarter than him." Everyone, but Gail, smiled at that. And Heather hesitated to correct him; that she was the one to instigate this latest adventure. "I'll keep you posted if anything comes over the radios, Jake."

"Thanks." Jake shook his head at his brother and watched them walk away, itching to do 'something' and get away from his mother. She had gone back to being quiet and that wasn't a good sign.

The power flickered around them for a moment and then stayed on. Heather began to worry Jake's hand in her lap as if it was her own.

"Even shored up, I think we're going to loose some windmills tonight. Good thing we have a lot of lights in the storage closet." Heather looked around the room when the lights flickered again.

Jake nodded his head in agreement and put his other hand down on her own, before she started tearing at one of his nails. "It's also a good thing we got the resident genius who designed the power system around here, on-call for later."

Heather managed to pull on a confident smile for him. "Damn skippy."

Jake raised his brows, happy his words had the desired effect on her. He also found himself grinning in spite of the fact they were discussing Jericho's probable journey back into the Dark Age. "I have a feeling we're going to have one hell of a mess out there come morning." Jake reached his hand up and brushed a strand of hair from her face, wiping at the long scratch on her forehead.

Heather met his eyes, now serious. "Yeah, but we'll fix it, patch it or replace it. We always do." Heather squeezed Jakes hand and pushed closer into him, giving him more of her to lean on. Jake fought the urge to kiss her right then.

"That's for Heather, Jake," Jessica placed a small bit of fabric smelling of antiseptic against Jakes arm, bringing him back to the situation around them. "As for you, I want you to check in with Kenchy at the clinic **when** we get out of here, **if** we still have a clinic. And don't give me that look..." Jessica pointed her needle at her now mutinous looking patient. "You're lucky that one laceration didn't come any closer to an artery. It was close."

Jake grudgingly agreed for the sake of argument and then looked to his mother. "Mom." She didn't answer. "Mom, I'm going to be fine!"

"Fine? Where did you get 'fine' out of any of this?" Gail grumbled.

"Mom." He hated it when she was like this, but found he was the most skilled at getting her this way.

"If you had hit that artery, Jake…" Gail's red eyes met her son's. "Or crushed an organ…" Gail trailed off and then paused. This wasn't the first time for Jake and sadly enough, she knew it wouldn't be the last. Gail looked to the young woman beside him, someone they both had come to love. "And then you…" Gail watched Heather's eyes brim and turn away.

"We didn't plan this as part of our day, Mom." Jake mumbled sarcastically as he too diverted his gaze. He wasn't so stupid not to be a little afraid of what had happened to him and especially what could have happened to Heather. That scared him more. Sarcasm and anger were Jake's tools of choice when dealing with his fear, but he immediately regretted using them right then.

"Don't you think I know that?" Jake winced at the hurt in his mother's voice. "I know the town needed those sirens. And I know the two of you were doing what needed to be done." Gail looked down to the blood on her hands and began to wipe at them. "But I'm tired of it being one of my family—or two…" Gail looked desperately at Heather. "…who has to be the ones to risk their lives for 'what's needed' for this town."

A silence fell over them while Jessica began to stitch Jake's leg.

Gail was upset with herself for being this way. She had always taken it upon herself to be strong and knew others had lost far more than she. But this year had pushed her too far and she had lost too many people not to feel shaken inside and a little bit wronged by fate or God's will or just plain bad luck. She watched her son silently grit his teeth when the first pass of thread went through his leg. She reached out and grabbed the hand Heather wasn't already holding and squeezed.

"I'm getting selfish in my old age and I don't want to let go of one more of my family, for the greater good of anything, for the rest of my lifetime. Besides…" Gail gave both her family a matronly smile. "…after tonight I was kind of hoping to be adding more members to this family." Gail's smile broadened with the young couple's obvious discomfort.

Jake cleared his throat and raised his brow, looking to Heather and then his mom, pulling both of their hands closer to him. "How about we get out of this shelter first, Mom?"

Jessica snorted while finishing her last stitch, making Jake wince and Gail began to quietly laugh.

Heather had regained all her color back and them some. "Hey!" She tentatively punched his shoulder and was met by a grin she was going to begin knowing quite intimately.

And then they all heard a resounding crash of glass and metal from above, making the occupants of the shelter scream and duck. The lights in the shelter over brightened and began to dim, increasing the panic in the confined space. Jake knew the wind turbines that powered Town Hall had gone down and they were now running on whatever energy the turbines had saved up.

"Easy, folks. The storm probably just blew out a window." Jake heard his brother try and speak over the screams. "We're safe down here. All we need to do is wait out the storm as calmly as possible, and we'll be fine."

Gail and Heather stepped away from Jake and tried to help calm the panicking crowd along with Gray and Eric across the room. Gail yelled to Stanley, who was by the storage lockers to start passing out the lanterns before it got too dark in the confined space. The crowd showed signs of calming with the passing of the lights in the dimming room. And then another crash came from above, taking out the rest of the light, sending the crowd into more screams. Jake stopped Jessica from her work and pulled himself up off the cot with a grimace and wobbled up onto its uneven surface, raising his hands above his head.

"Everybody! " Jake yelled. A light was placed in his hands and he shown it above his head. "JERICHO!" he boomed and was met by enough silence to get out his words. "My brother is right. We're safe right now, but we have to stay calm and help each other out." Jake spotted some of his deputies. "Tommy. Sara. Bud. Help Stanley and Mimi pass the lights around." Through the illumination of the passing lanterns, he spotted other familiar faces. "How many of you took my mom's first aid class? Joe? Dixie? Ed? How about anyone who can, go and check on your neighbors around you. My mom and Jessica will be around to help out as soon as they're done babying me." That got a couple of unexpected chuckles from the stressed crowd.

"When the storm dies down, we'll see if we can move some of you upstairs—but only if it's safe. And I need to ask you all to stay at Town Hall till morning light. We don't want any of you tripping over tree branches or your neighbor's trash cans in the dark when you head back to your homes."

Jake watched some of the crowd nod their heads and begin to talk amongst themselves. He even saw a handful of folks start to walk to others in the crowd and do what he had asked. Maybe he had played down the extent of what may be awaiting them tomorrow. Lord knew he didn't have a crystal ball. But worrying about probable realities wouldn't help his people get through the now. _'His people?'_

Jake continued to look around the room, and could not help but think of his father and grandfather when he caught his brothers eye. _'I didn't sign up for this.' _Jake unconsciously touched the badge on his belt_. 'I did, but I didn't…'_

'_Didn't have to, kiddo, your DNA did it for ya. But we'd say you and your brother are doing a damn fine job.' _

Jake nodded his head to his brother and pulled his hand from his star, before allowing their mother and Heather drag him stiffly back down to the cot. He turned and caught Heather smiling at him.

"What?" he asked when she didn't stop looking at him that way, like she would burst?

She just shook her head and then kissed him, before taking his hand once more.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

The night ticked by, while the town waited out the storm. Most of the shelter's occupants had settled into a nervous quiet. They found comfort amongst themselves, pilled against one another in the dim light. Every once in a while crackling static of the police or emergency radio, or a muffled conversation, could be heard. Right now someone was singing a hymn to a sleeping child over the call of 'Gin' from the card game at the back of the room where some of Jericho's old timers had set up to play.

The cards, some poker chips, even a bottle of hooch, had been found right alongside the first aid supplies. Fred Kenston, Heather's friend and fellow Grease Monkey, had helped with stocking the shelter. He said a man needed repair for both his physical and mental health when the occasion called for it. Being up to your elbows in agitated neighbors, down in a storm shelter, when all hell is breaking loose outside, called for it.

Jake looked to the left side of his and Heather's cot and could see the town's newlyweds curled up together, whispering in the shadows. Despite spending their honeymoon in a storm shelter a couple feet away from Bonnie, Sean, and everyone else, they seemed to be holding up. He'd heard Mimi earlier declare that she always wanted her wedding to be a memorable one. Well, an act of God certainly qualified.

Jake felt his bad leg begin to slide off the cot and tried to move it with out wincing. Damned if his entire body didn't hurt like hell—more than he had let on to his caretakers—but it was well worth it. The warm curves and strong heartbeat of the woman against his side was all the confirmation he needed. He was keeping his promise to her; keeping her safe even when she was hell bent on being otherwise at the time. And he was proud of her today. Once again she had amazed and frightened him, all in one master stroke.

He looked down at the top of her head while she rested her eyes, his lips turning into a wistful smile. He knew she wasn't asleep and was fairly certain she wanted to talk about what had happened between them earlier tonight, but they both knew this wasn't the place for that conversation. There were a lot of things that Jake needed to tell her that hadn't been covered in their dance floor confession, but it would have to wait till the rest of the storm died away.

So Jake pulled her closer into his good side and enjoyed the feel of her adjusting her body against him, as if it had been done a thousand nights before now. Life never ceased to amaze him. Last night he had sat on his bedroom floor longing for this, and now he had it. _'She loves me.' _No matter the amount of fear and worry he had right then, or the doubts that always seemed not far from his mind, Jake now had one very certain thing to touch down upon. _'Heather loves me.'_

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Shortly before midnight, they received a call from Jimmy at the clinic shelter and from some of Jake's men who had been out on watch when the storm had hit. All confirmed they were still there and like them, without power.

By then, the storm was dying out, leaving them with a steady rainstorm, so Eric and a few others opened up the shelter doors and were met by the damp cold. The cooler air was a welcomed relief after being roasted in the close air of the shelter below. The shattered windows that welcomed in the rain and debris were caused by tree branches and the unfortunate windmill that once powered the building. Aside from the dramatic look of the damage done to the windows and a side door that flapped crookedly in the wind, Town Hall had once again withstood yet another assault.

With Heather acting as his crutch, Jake limped his way into the Sheriff's office, along with Eric, their mother, and a few others who worked for the town. Sara monitored the short wave radio bouncing from frequency to frequency to keep in touch with New Bern, Liberty and whoever else was willing to act as a lifeline to the world outside Jericho. The power they used for the radio coming from the one emergency generator the Grease Monkeys had gotten to take bio fuel.

Jake leaned against one of the deputies' desks and gingerly held his hand to the bandages on his exposed leg. He really did like not limping for that little bit of time he had between winter and last night.

"I'll see if I can find you another pair of pants in the donations closet." He felt his mother whiz past and head back out of the office.

Heather watched him shake his head and wince when he moved his leg again. "You know Kenchy is just gonna have you take them off again." Heather grinned.

"Not going to mind that, are you?" Jake spoke low in her ear and enjoyed the blush it elicited.

"You don't waste any time, do you Mr. Green?" She whispered. "And injured?"

"Wasted enough time." He reached for her hand on the desktop between them and caught her eyes when they raced up to meet his own. "And I can't let a little pain get in my way."

"Ah, Sheriff…" Sara spoke a little hesitantly. She was sitting close enough to the new lovebirds to get the gist of their conversation and hated to interrupt. "I got some news from Liberty. Looks like we're good for now, but we should expect another storm front later tonight. Another big one." Jake dropped his head to his chest and snorted.

"Jake, we still don't know the extent of last night's damages. What if the next one is worse, then what?" Gray had just walked into the office from his own. He looked haggard and Jake didn't blame him, but the Mayor needed to better understand one of his father's golden rules of leadership.

"One disaster at a time, Gray. One disaster at a time." Jake proclaimed as he got up from the desk and limped into his office. He hoped his mom had found him another pair of pants.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

At daybreak, Town Hall's temporary residents headed out into the rubbish-strewn streets of their town to determine the extent of the storm's wrath. They were sent off with the warning to report back before nightfall, because of the forecasted storm, and asked to check on the neighbors around them who had stayed in their basements.

The rising sun cast a post storm glow over the stripped roof tops and broken windows. Shingles and uprooted shrubs and lumber and glass and just about every other imaginable item under the size of a Motorbike could be found in the square. The festive lights from last nights party were pulled into a pre-Christmas knot no one was ever going to untangle and replaced by other ornaments not so pretty, strewn through the trees.

"Is that a toilet seat?" Mimi questioned Stanley as they made it to where their party had been held only a few hours before. Stanley just nodded his head in conformation and placed an arm around his wife. "Haven't seen that since my college years," Mimi weakly chuckled.

"What?" She signed at Bonnie when she saw the girl scowl. "Wizard of Oz moving parties didn't happen all that often where I came from."

Stanley shook his head at the women in his life. "F2, ya think?" Stanley called over to Jake.

"Maybe." Jake hobbled over the debris. "Won't know till we see the rest of the town. Hope it was just a 2."

"Well, I don't see any cows in trees, so I think we're going to find some wheels and see if we can get to the farm." Stanley took inventory of his family, including Sean. "Hope my guys out at the homestead had a less eventful night."

Jake reached for his friend and gave his shoulder a firm squeeze. "Take a radio with you. Report back what you see out your way when you can."

"No problem, Best Man." Stanley nodded to Jake and then turned to Heather. "And Best Man's girl."

"Get out of here, smart ass," Jake ordered. He looped his arm around Heather's waist as they watched the Richmonds head for home.

Gail walked up to the couple, over the mess and placed her hands on her hips as she inspected the sight around them. "Lord, what a mess."

"Yeah, just hope it's no worse anywhere else." Jake reached for his mother's hand and gave it a squeeze.

It was…

By the time Jake and the others made it to the clinic, through the debris-filled streets, reports were coming in from around town, by foot and by car. The worst news was that the south side of town was minus four houses, and the abandoned roller rink down on Smithdale was on fire. Jake knew that probably wasn't going to be the end sum of the storm's damages

Jimmy emerged from the thankfully still-standing clinic when they arrived. The place was packed with the injured and the just plain scared.

"Jake, what happened to you?" Jimmy made it to his boss's side over a pile of shingles.

Jake ignored the question and looked around the outside of the building and the windmill half leaning over the side of the roof. "At least your windmill still has its bladed intact. When did your power go out? He looked back at Jimmy and then around him. "And where's Bill? I need him to go check on the windmills up on Packard Ridge."

"Heather, get Jake to a room for the doctor to look at him." Gail ordered, impatiently interrupting her son. "Where's Kenchy, Jimmy?"

"He's with another patient. I can get him, Mrs. Green." Gail raised her hand in thanks and went for Dr. Duwhalia herself.

"Jimmy?" Jake ordered.

Jimmy took up Heather's job as crutch when they made it into the clinic. "We lost the building's power half-way through the night," Jimmy reported, shifting his boss's weight as they pushed past the chaos in the hall. For a lanky man, Jake was proving heavy. Maybe Jimmy was just tired. "It made things pretty scary for everyone, but we got through."

Jake felt his friend's shoulders sag under his arm and felt like he should be helping him. "And Bill, no one has seen him since the storm. The other fella's who were out with him looking for Carl said they got separated and figured he went back to the Sheriff's office."

Once they found a private spot at the back of the clinic, Jake nodded for Jimmy to close the curtain on the small space. "Carl's dead." Jake spoke low. "Heather and I found him by the siren tower when we went to get it running."

"How?" Jimmy asked.

"Looked like a broken neck. We think he may have fallen from the tower. Not sure. I sent Fred Kenston with Deputy Smith to check on the Township Garage, after they drop off May. I warned them about the body."

"Lord, Jake. Hope Carl's the only fatality of this storm."

"Me too."

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

By the time Gail returned with the doctor, Jake's bed area had become a temporary command center. Through the cacophony of orders and Gail trying to get the lot of them out of the room so her son could be treated, Heather took the opportunity to slip out and go find some more suitable cloths for her day ahead. In the locker room, she found a pair of scrubs—the second pair she had borrowed in so many weeks—and a pair of tennis shoes she would try and remember to return to Jessica, if she didn't destroy them first.

With the clinic's basic but useful tool kit tucked under her arm, she looked down at the dirty blue dress she had just spent the best and yet scariest, night of her life. Heather gently folded the fabric and placed the dress in the top of Gail's locker. She smiled and touched the outside of the locker door when it clicked shut. _'God, I have it bad.'_ Heather shifted the tool box under her arm and squared her shoulders with all the confidence in the world. Petite girl or not, she was feeling ten feet tall. _'Time to fix __**our **__town.'_

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

"Where's Heather?" Jake pulled away from Kenchy's inspection and looked around the room. Gail looked at her son questioningly and then to Eric and Mary. None of them had noticed her leave during the earlier commotion.

"She's on the roof with Jimmy and Titus, Jake. Fixing the windmill." Jessica yelled over her shoulder from the room across the hall.

Jake stiffly reached out his hand to Eric for him to relinquish his radio. Gail noted the frustrated look on Jake's face, and by the way everyone else was smirking, knew the others saw it as well. They were all thinking the same thing…Karma is a bitch.

"Jimmy? This is Jake…"

"She's with me, Jake. Titus was just here a minute ago. We're almost done with the clinic's power situation." Jimmy spoke quickly, knowing Jake was ticked. "She said she told you guys…"

"Let me speak to her." Jake cut in. _'She nearly gets blown away by a tornado last night and this morning she's hanging off roof tops.'_

"Jake." Heather was using her logical school teacher voice. The one she used when she had to talk Jake into something or calm him down. "The doctor needed to look at you and you can't be crawling up ladders right now…"

"Heather…"

"We need power in the clinic, Jake. And if you let me get back to it…"

"HEATHER."

"Yes Jake?"

"Just be careful. And stay with Jimmy and Titus."

"Okay." She hadn't expected to get off this easy.

"Soon as Kenchy is done, I'll be right up." Jake could already see rebellion on his mother's face.

"I'll have it fixed by then." Heather warned. "So you were worried about me?" She asked in a teasing voice.

Jake looked at the radio and thought of the over-achieving girl on the roof above, who once told him she was just crossword puzzles, flannel pajamas and the occasional light beer. He took a weary breath. "Always."

Jake put the radio on the bed beside him and noticed the silence in the room. They had all been intently listening to his and Heather's conversation, failing miserably not to smile or laugh. Even the doctor was smiling.

"Starting right now," Jake ordered, "all of you need to find a better source of entertainment." As they all began to laugh at Jake's expense, the lights around them flickered on. _'My girl.'_

Soon after power was restored to the clinic, Gail was called away to help with the injured and Mary volunteered to help. It didn't go unnoticed by Jake, his mother grabbing the other woman's hand when they left. It also didn't get past him the large elephant left in the room when the doctor, Eric and he were the only ones left.

Jake wasn't sure just how much of April's death still affected his brother. It wasn't like the two men had heart-to-hearts often. And alcohol induced confessions didn't count. But he did know that this was the first time since his sister-in-law's death, all three men had been alone together. Jake slid off the bed and landed on his good leg. He was going to selfishly use that elephant to escape while both men were being distracted by it.

"Jake." Eric pleaded. Jake ignored.

"I cannot recommend traipsing about with these injuries, Jake…"

"So you're done with me?"

"On many levels and most days you come in here, Jake." The doctor deadpanned. "Your mother and Jessica did well patching you up, but you still need to heal…"

"So I can go?"

"Jake, Mom will skin you alive if you leave now. Stay here and supervise…" Eric stopped when his brother raised his dark brow and rolled his eyes. "Then you're on your own with Mom." Eric raised his hands in defeat.

"I must agree with your brother. I will be forced to tell Gail you left AMA for my own sake. I do hope you understand. I work with the woman."

Jake looked from Eric to the doctor and grabbed his pants. "I'm good with that."

"SHHHT" The radio on the bed spit out. "Any-any body hear me? Damned if this thing is workin…"

Jake shook his head, grinning, and picked up the radio. For being Heather's best fix-it man… "Fred, this is Jake. How much of the repair shop is going to need repairing?"

"Jake? Goo—Lord, Jake—me and Tommy found—'im…" The sound of static distorted Fred's excited report and Jake could only make out half the words. "—slit fro—ear to ea…"

"Fred, you're breaking up. Your battery must be getting low. You said ear-to-ear? Carl's neck was broken…"

"I ain't meaning the—ead wingnut! Tom—found—im— and puked all over th—body…." The radio hit another burst of static.

"Fred?" Jake yelled into the radio.

"Ja—I was meanin—your—eputy—Bill!"

Jake lost his ability to breath and his heart literally seized in his chest, leaving the blood in his body immediately cold. Eric and Kenchy watched something frightening slide over their Sheriff's features…fear.

"JIMMY!" Jake yelled into the radio. When the answer wasn't immediate, he bolted out into the crowded hall and flew towards the clinics back door, hoping beyond all hope his gut was wrong. "Jimmy, get Heather…"

"Hello, Jake."

Jake froze halfway down the hall when the calm, deadly, familiar voice slid from the radio in his hand.

"Looks like your running low on deputies. Better come and collect his body. I'll talk to you when you do."

**TBC**


	18. Chapter 18

**Disclaimer:** Yep, don't own Jericho or its character's, but the story line is mine along with the words I give them.

**Authors Note:** Sorry it took so long, but real life stepped in and did a jig on my plans. I'm starting this chapter as a continuation of the last, with a rehash of the last moments before the cliffhanger. Emotion and humor are things that come easier for me. Action has been a new creative branch for me to climb on. I love watching action on the tube and read it, but write it…I just hope I improve as I keep writing stories. I'm glad you guys enjoy reading this AU version of Jericho, but if something sounds off to you, tell me. It only helps me do better.

What also helps me 'do better' are my lovely betas, JT and Midnight. Both have helped a great deal with keeping the action more believable and everything else sounding smooth. Thank you for the help and ideas.

As you read this chapter you may find a line I borrowed from the Sci Fi Channel's _Eureka_, tell me if you spot it. It gave me the sappy, but good chills when I heard it. And as promised, I brought back some old Jake type behavior. Hope it is believable.

**Warning: **Another dead body, a pissed Jake, heroine in peril, and a fair amount of bad language.

**Chapter 17: Rescuing Me **

by Ann Pendragon

"Fred, you're breaking up. Your battery must be getting low. You said ear-to-ear? Carl's neck was broken…"

"I ain't meaning the—ead wingnut! Tom—found—im— and puked all over th—body…." The radio hit another burst of static.

"Fred?" Jake yelled into the radio.

"Ja—I was meanin—your—eputy—Bill!"

Jake lost his ability to breath and his heart literally seized in his chest, leaving the blood in his body immediately cold. Eric and Kenchy watched something frightening slide over their Sheriff's features…fear.

"JIMMY!" Jake yelled into the radio. When the answer wasn't immediate, he bolted out into the crowded hall and flew towards the clinic's back door, hoping beyond all hope his gut was wrong. "Jimmy, get Heather…"

"Hello, Jake."

Jake froze halfway down the hall when the calm, deadly, familiar voice slid from the radio in his hand.

"Looks like you're running low on deputies. Better come and collect his body. I'll talk to you when you do."

"Constantino!"

Jake burst out the back of the clinic and into the lot behind it, slamming the metal door into the brick wall. Gun drawn, he swept his sides and then above finding nothing but packing boxes and sky. Two quick steps around the door, towards the roof's ladder, Jake's foot caught on something solid under the strewn boxes around him, pulling his bad leg out from under him and sending him head first into the obstruction. It was Jimmy's body…

"No! No! No! No!" Jake painfully scurried back over Jimmy's still form, grabbing for his friend's wrist then neck for signs of life. _'God, he's still alive!'_ And then he noticed the scattered tools around them under the boxes…

"HEATHER!" Jake screamed.

"Jake!" Eric and Kenchy shot through the back door.

"He's alive!" Jake yelled to Kenchy as the doctor immediately bent down to tend to the fallen deputy. Jake grabbed the radio and teetered up from Jimmy's side, making another scan of the area around them.

"Constantino!" Jake growled low into the radio, only receiving static.

"Jake, where's Heather?" Jake couldn't give an answer; he didn't have one and it was scaring the hell out of him. He looked up to the roof and started for the ladder.

"I'll go." Before Jake could say no, Eric pulled his own side arm and began his ascent. And then static shot out of the radio in Jake's hand with a nasty hiss.

"Sorry I didn't answer your call earlier," the ex-mayor of New Bern's voice politely drawled. "I was just finishing up with something. Tell me, did I kill him?" The sickening courtesy in his enemy's voice boiled Jake's blood.

"Why don't you come back here and find out." Jake's voice slid out, cold and deadly, while his mind focused on just how much he needed to kill this man.

"Oh, I don't think so." The voice darkly chuckled over the radio. "I just said goodbye to our girl and now I have places to be. And you're going to be very busy soon, so perhaps another time."

At that Jake felt his stomach drop. "What do you want?"

"Now that's what I always liked about you, Jake." Constantino's voice now took on a deadly, businesslike manor. "No false pretenses. No beating around the bush. Just straight to business with you. Well, I want my life back, **Jake**, but since you helped to permanently take it away from me, I've decided to take a **big** chunk of yours while evening the score with Ms. Lisinski…"

"What have you done?" Jake loudly demanded.

"No, Jake, it's what **you** have done." Constantino spat. "**You** have brought this on yourself and our sweet little Heather. Just like your father, you were warned not to push me and now there will be a cost. For Johnston, it was his life. For you—well, judging by that kiss last night in the square, I'd say you're gonna wish it was your life I took."

"I swear to GOD, if you hurt her…" Jake's rage grew as the last vestige of his control waned.

"You'll what? Couldn't stop me from taking her away from you, could ya, Jake?"

With Constantino's words, some of Jake's rage began to turn inwards. He was right, he hadn't protected her…

"So hurt her? No, I haven't hurt her—much. You're lucky I haven't killed my traitorous little girl outright. No, she's fine for now. I've tucked her away so you can find her sweet little corpse another day."

"Son-of-a-bitch!" Jake yelled.

"Now, now. She might still be able to say one last goodbye, if she wakes up before her air runs out. So long, Jake Green."

The radio was once again silent. Jake tried raising it to his lips, but didn't have the strength left in him. His life force taken from him, he fell to his knees in the gravel; broken, lost to the world around him. His worse fear had come to pass; he hadn't protected the woman he loved. He failed her. _'Heather…'_

His mother and Gray, along with others from the clinic, had emerged from the building. The doctor and two clinic staff were getting a still-unconscious Jimmy into the building for medical treatment; the scream of Margaret Taylor was soon heard after they made it through the door. Everyone else in the back lot stood in silence, watching their fallen leader. They had heard the last half of Constantino's vindictive words.

"Jake?" Gail's voice quivered as she made for her son, but was stopped by Mary and Jessica, when Eric raised his hand to them. '_Please, not again.'_

"Jake." Eric kneeled down to the wretched man who had replaced his brother. Jake was indistinguishable through his pain and despair. Eric needed Jake back. Heather needed Jake back and quick.

"Brother," Eric felt his stomach clench when Jake's glassy wide eyes finally focused on him, not really seeing him. "She is out there alive, Jake. Heather needs you, so pick up that radio. Jake, we still have a chance."

Jakes pained eyes narrowed and his lips shook. He nodded his head to Eric, but could not yet speak or stand. Slowly he brought the radio back to his lips and closed his eyes.

"H-Heather?" His voice shook. "HEATHER!" he yelled out, shaking everyone around him with the sound of his desperation. "Please, Heather…"

"J-Jake?"

"Heather!" Jake cried out, holding onto the radio for dear life. "Oh God, I thought I…" Jake shook his head at the thought and cleared his throat. He heard her voice; she was alive and he had hope. "Where are you? Are you hurt?"

"I-I don't know and no, just dizzy." Heather grumbled. "I think he used chloroform on me…where in the hell did the bastard get chloroform?" she spat.

Jake felt a shaky smile emerge on his face. He still felt in a haze hearing her voice; and a pissed Heather was a different creature entirely to him.

"Jake—Jimmy? Constantino…"

"No. No, Jimmy's alive. He's with Kenchy." Constantino must have knocked out the deputy to get to Heather. He had been waiting for the right moment… "Heather, can you tell me where you are, what's around you? Did you see anything before you were…?"

"No. I mean, I don't remember a thing after coming down the ladder and being grabbed from behind." Heather didn't want to tell him how Constantino whispered 'Goodnight, Daughter' into her ear before she passed out.

"Hold on a sec, let me get my penlight and look around me."

'_Penlight?_' He'd have to ask later how she kept it on her person after being abducted by a mad man. God he prayed for that later.

"Here we go." Static crackled around her words. "Salt, Jake. I'm in a salt container, one of the dumpster size ones that holds the raw salt—by the feel and smell of it, an old one. Smell something else too. Like skunk?"

"The mines, Jake…" Gray blurted out. Jake raised his hand for silence.

"Knock on the walls for me. Do they sound hollow…"

"I got ya…" Jake heard the full sound of metallic thudding come over the radio. "I'm buried, Jake. At least my body will be well preserved by the residual salt…" Heather's voice trailed off from her poor attempt at a joke while Jake recovered from it. "Sorry."

"It's okay. I know, I know..." Jake spoke softly. "I'm going to find you. We'll get you out of this."

"I know you will, Jake. Just keep talking to me, okay? I was never much for small, dark places."

"Every twenty minutes. Every twenty, you'll hear my voice even if it's for less than a minute. We have to conserve your air and your batteries, okay?" Jake knew that if the radio was Jimmy or Bill's, it hadn't been charged long before Jericho's electric went out and the size of one of those salt containers couldn't hold more than a half a day of air, at best guess.

"Okay." Her voice broke a little at the edges, making Jake's heart break further in two. _'I failed her. She's down in that box because of me.' _

"I love you, Jake. I love you."

Jake took a shaky breath and closed his eyes. "I love you, too." He lowered the radio from his lips. _'Please God, let me find her alive. Do what you will with me, but please not Heather…'_

The pain in Jake's body had reasserted its self, but was still no match for the pain in his heart. He collected his sidearm and holstered it. Shakily he got up from the ground and turned towards the back door of the clinic, where he was met by a sea of scared and concerned faces. Nearly a third of the town was coming together around him, all looking to him; watching and waiting. And for that moment he was confused.

"We're here to help ya find Heather, Sheriff." A ripple of agreement went through the crowd as Fred Kenston moved from around Gray and a teary Gail and the girls, then stood before Jake. "Some of us heard what that rat bastard said on the radio and the word is spreadin' right now."

Fred eyed the young man with compassion. He knew what that girl meant to him, to all of them. He reached out and placed a comforting old hand on Jake's shoulder and smiled when the Sheriff looked at all the amassed volunteers.

"Don't look so surprised, Green. We heard ya the day of your Daddy's funeral, about us all bein' family. It's still so. Besides…" the old Grease Monkey patted the hero's shoulder. "You're our Sheriff and she's our girl."

Gratitude and pride warmed Jake's soul and swelled his throat with emotion. All of these people had just gone through a tornado and possibly another to come. They had their own families to take care of, but here they stood. Jake nodded his head to Fred and then to the crowd. He touched his brother's arm and then walked to his mother.

"We're going to find her, Mom. I'll get her back." Jake soberly pledged.

"I know you will, son." Gail's reddened eyes held her son's. "But after you do; I want that man found and dealt with so he can never hurt another one of our family again."

Jake felt a chill run down his spine as he held his mother's hand; he had never heard murder in his mother's voice, but he understood it keenly. Jake nodded to the matriarch of his family, making a silent promise to her, and then turned to the rest of the crowd. "Okay, let's do this." Jake yelled with authority.

"Eric, help Fred get our people together and split them into search teams of at least four. Assign a leader. We also need to know how many vehicles we have. Gray, we need the salvage log from town hall listing who traded for a salt container through Heather's salvage operation and a map of the mines, Jericho and the surrounding area. We have to assume Constantino took Heather shortly after she brought the power back on in the clinic. That gives him at least twenty minutes before he made contact with me."

"Jake, the mine covers miles…"

"And we are going to search every goddamn one of them that has storage containers. He's had enough time in our town to do some quick planning, but not enough to bury an entire salt storage container."

"Then we'll start with the North section of the mines." Gray spoke. "Last month some of the boxes were buried in a land slide."

Jake pointed his radio to Gray and nodded his head. "Good, then that's where we'll begin." Jake turned back to the crowd. "Heather's radio had a fair bit of static. I know her batteries are low and we have another storm on its way, but it could also mean she's close to being out of range. That puts it at about a four mile radius from..."

"Jake…"

Jake felt his brother pull at his elbow. Russell and some of his search party had just entered the back lot from the clinic. It was like waving a red cape in front of a bull…

"Jake, we heard on the…"

In that instant, Jake charged down Russell with as much force and speed his injured leg allowed, taking the taller man off his feet and into the wall of the clinic with a sickening thud; leaving no time for those around him to react.

"God **damn** you. You had him and you lost him. **Son-of-a-bitch**!" Jake roared, his eyes blazing with hellfire meant for another man. But right now, Russell was the next best thing.

Several of Russell's party rushed to help him, but Russell's open hand held them at bay. He didn't struggle in Jake's grasp, nor did he turn from the blame and violent rage the sheriff's eyes so skillfully wielded like weapons. If he could have changed any of this, he would have. Jake didn't have to assign blame, Russell took it readily.

"I know, Jake. I know…"

Jake smacked Russell up against the wall again and became even more enraged when he didn't fight back. "Ahhhhh!" Jake growled and roughly pushed away from Russell.

Russell quickly gathered himself and jumped in front of the wounded Sheriff and harm's way once more.

"Out of my way, Russell, or I will go right through you." Jake's cold, lethal voice ground out his promise. The present state Jake was in, Russell knew he could kill him and not blink, but he could not back down from the intense man before him. He owed Heather that; he owed Jake, even if the man wasn't in a state of mind to give a damn.

"I can't do that, Jake. New Bern has more mobile resources and men. We can double our search for Heather…"

At the sound of Heather's name, Jake's fist snapped out and punched Russell swiftly in the face, sending him into his men. Eric and a couple deputies came to stop Jake from going any further, but he pushed them away.

Russell stood from his men's grasp, waving them off once more and wiped the blood from his lips. Again, he stood in front of Jericho's enraged leader, meeting him eye to eye.

"Go ahead Jake. Keep using me as your punching bag if it makes you feel better. I can take it, but Heather is running out of time."

And like that, Jake stopped. This wasn't about him or his need to hate. Hate was easier to deal with than his own guilt. Hate was clean and simple. But beating the hell out of Russell wasn't going to change what happened, so the hate was ebbing away now, only to be replaced by shame. Jake looked Russell straight in the eye and saw an understanding. Jake wasn't going to apologize, and Russell didn't want him to. It was time to find Heather.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Several hours later…

Jake leaned heavily against the bumper of Stanley's truck after stepping out of the salty flood water and pulled at the brine soaked fabric against his legs, grimacing. The salt had already penetrated the bandages that covered his wounds. All Jake could do now was to tolerate the pain.

Nearly half an hour ago, his quarter of the search team had made it to the lower half of the mine's junkyard and found it flooded. As soon as Jake saw the standing water, he couldn't have been quicker to get Heather on the radio. The last thing they needed was drowning to be added to the list of things that could kill Heather right then.

"Shhhhhht. So, how's that whole finding me thing going for you guys? SHHHHHT."

Jake picked up the radio, hanging off the strap on his side. The only time Jake stopped moving or working was when he spoke to her, and sometimes not even then. He had left the stinging pit of water below to speak to Heather again; it was to be their 21st call, adding another call to that number had begun to wear heavily on both of them.

"You know I can't give details. He might still be out there listening…" Jake flinched when he tried to yank at the fabric just over his deepest wound.

"I know, Jake. I know."

Jake heard the frustration in her voice, more than the fear right then. The search party had enlisted the aid of a couple ATVs and bikes to communicate between the searchers so they didn't transmit there next moves over the air ways and into unwelcome ears. He knew Heather understood this, but it didn't stop her from being annoyed about being in the dark, both figuratively and physically. What was making matters worse was that the search was stalling. The last several of their short calls had become brainstorm session between them and some of the other searchers. Everyone was growing tense. The growing cloud cover and winds from the west promised another go-around with Mother Nature and Heather's radio signal was growing weaker and weaker with each call.

Jake tried to be of comfort to her on those calls. He may have become a robot with the others, coldly giving out orders and laboring on, brusquely proclaiming 'I'm fine' with each turn, even while his appearance screamed otherwise. But each time he spoke to Heather, Jake tried to keep the conversation light, knowing that it may be the last conversation before the battery on her radio finally failed. However, 'keeping it light' was becoming a struggle for both of them. Both knew the other was scared and time was running low.

"What I wouldn't give for the Abernathy's bloodhound, Deak." Jake tried to grin, looking for a funny tidbit from his past to divert her attention. "Dad actually used that dog to track me and Granddad down the year before I left town. We had gotten plastered while out on the ranch, and took off for parts unknown. Boy, Dad was pissed at me. But Mom, she wanted to kill Granddad. She said the dog had more sense." Jake's lips curled a bit more when he heard a small, but desired giggle over the static of the radio.

"Well, too bad the Abernathy's had to eat him. The dog, I mean. I would have liked to have met your grandfather."

Jake's eyebrows rose and couldn't help letting out a chuckle at the gruesome image. "Now that's the humor I know and love." Jake grinned. "Granddad would have fallen head over heels for you, ya know? He would have said you were the hellcat I was needin'. Probably would have been one of the few things he and my mom would have agreed on, if he was still alive."

"Hellcat?"

"Don't talk; and yeah, hellcat. He had this thing for categorizing woman as hellcats or drapes. Drapes decorate your life as it is, looking pretty on your arm while doing it. Hellcats come in and tear up your world as you know it and then change it forever." Jake rubbed his thumb over the radio, forgetting his pain and the situation for a moment. He realized how much truth he found in his Grandfather's words now, and how gladly he'd let Heather tear up his world anyway she wanted.

"That's me…" Heathers voice barely registered over the radio's static, but he heard the tears in her voice.

"Hey, don't cry. Please, don't cry." Not being able to reach out to her right then was killing him. "With that big brain of yours and our folks scouring the countryside, we're bound to hit a home run."

"Go team…" She spoke softly.

Jake looked out over the cloudy horizon in frustration. There were things he had been carrying around in his heart, things he wanted to tell her so she would know just how special she was to him. He had wanted to give her these things, these words while picnicking in a green pasture or lying under warmed sheets. But not like this.

He couldn't hold her now to give her the comfort she needed, but he could give her some of those words. "Heather, you need to know that every right choice I've made since you came back into my life has been because of you." Jake cleared his throat. "Aside from finding someone they all care about, me not reverting back to my old stupid self has strengthed our town's resolve to find you as soon as possible."

"Jake," Heather smiled through her tears. "Just be nice to my Monkeys, okay?"

"Don't talk; you don't have much battery left and your air…" Jakes words trailed a moment. "You need to conserve your air." Jake leaned further against the truck's bumper and wrapped his free arm around his own waist, holding tight.

"Agreeing to be our town's Sheriff was one of those choices I made because of you." He was certain anyone with a radio from town was listening, but didn't care. It was just him and Heather now. "I didn't do it for the town—because I don't need a badge to help me do what's right, and not because of some enhanced sense of Green civic duty, but because you believed in me and I wanted to keep you safe…"

Heather listened to Jake's voice trail off into the static of her failing radio. She heard the weariness in his voice, and the guilt that lay underneath his words. Heather pulled her hand across her tears and looked around her dark prison and possibly her final resting place. Determinedly, she tried to square her shoulders and cleared her throat.

"Jake?" She couldn't let guilt be the last thing he had when he thought of her. "Jake, this isn't your fault…"

Jake lowered his head along with the radio from his lips, just as the tears began to silently rack his body. Someone could have stabbed him in the guts right then and it would have hurt less than hearing her tell him those words now.

"And I still believ— in you, Jake." The faith in her voice strong. "And I'll never stop, because I lov…Shhhhhhhhhhh."

Jake quickly wiped at his eyes and brought the radio back to his lips. "He-Heather, you're breaking up. Your battery…"

Heather pulled her now useless radio to her chest and began to cry. "Damn it," she sobbed. In fear and frustration, she struck out at the top of her confined space with the radio and then dropped it at her feet. Slowly she crumpled to the bottom of the container, trying to rein in her emotions, knowing that now more than ever she needed to stay calm.

'_I am stronger than this. I can do this, I have to do this. It will not end this way.'_ She kept repeating in her head till her breathing slowed and her tears stopped. Heather reached out to retrieve the dropped radio near her feet and her hands fell on fresh damp dirt …

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

By 4 o'clock, Jericho's Sheriff had ordered Gray's team to finish the search on the west end of the mines. Everyone else would continue searching Town Hall's list of people that a container was traded to. Those orders had been the only words Jake Green had spoken to anyone in the two hours since he'd lost contact with Heather.

Stanley knew Jake was shutting up and shutting down within himself. In his friend's early days this would have been followed by Jake alienating himself and then running as far and fast from what ever was troubling him. His buddy didn't have that luxury anymore.

'_Yeah, —well—we all grow up sometime.'_

Stanley walked up the muddy bank to bring Jake food in what he already knew was to be a wasted effort. He was only attempting the bowl of greens and Government Issue jerky on Mimi and Bonnie's insistence. Mrs. Green had been almost forcibly exiled by her oldest son to the now very secure clinic for her safety; so Stanley's girls had been trying their hand at mothering Jake. It hadn't been going well. Jake hadn't eaten since sometime yesterday, or slept since the morning before; and it was evident that he was in a great deal of pain all around. All of this was being wound into a very silent, very explosive package that no warm smile, off-handed joke or bowl of food was going to cease. Stanley told them that the only comfort any of them could give Jake was their continued cooperation in the only function Jake now cared about; to find Heather, and for all their sakes, find her alive and soon.

"Hey, Jake." Before Stanley could reach his friend the sound of large engines came up over the ridge, followed by a small convoy of military trucks that soon pulled to a stop in front of them.

In the cab of the first truck, they recognized Col. Hoffman in the passenger seat. Two soldiers stepped out of the truck behind his, followed by none other than Gail Green and a heavily bandaged Deputy Taylor.

Jake's eyes quickly narrowed as he walked toward his mother and Jimmy. _'I told them to stay at the clinic.'_ He would deal with the two of them in a minute. Now he was heading towards the next occupant to get out of the truck, Mr. Perkins, Jericho's Johnny-come-lately government liaison.

"Sheriff Green, what happened to you?" The bureaucrat asked politely when Jericho's normally businesslike Sheriff angrily hobbled up to him.

"Building fell on me. Why are you here?" Jake asked tersely.

Mr. Perkins wasn't quite sure what to do with the answer he was given, but quickly decided to answer the apparently very worn and very scary looking young law man before him.

"I-we are here to assist with the search for New Bern's fugitive, Philip Constantino. Your deputy has told me the ex-Mayor of New Bern has caused quite a stir for you folks in Jericho. Two people dead, one injured and then an abduction…"

Right then, Jake actually wished for Gray to be there, because dealing with the pompous suit in front of him was far more than he could handle right then. Any semblance of social nicety Jake ever had with politicians and bureaucrats did not exist at this point in time.

Jake could not help but think, where was the government when Constantino first escaped? Better yet, why hadn't they arrested him themselves when the laundry list of crimes Philip Constantino committed was proven and attached to the man the day of the first government sit down? And then Mr. Perkins understatement that 'the ex-mayor was causing quite a _stir_ for Jericho?'

Stanley, Gail and Jimmy seemed to sense Jake's state of mind souring even further, when he didn't answer Mr. Perkins or stop his cold stare down of the man, so they acted quickly.

"Mr. Perkins, we are presently searching for Ms. Lisinski…"

Gail spoke with every grace of a mayor's wife to the official, while Jimmy and Stanley gently steered their friend back a few feet from the liaison. Stanley knew from experience getting Jake out of striking distance usually cooled him off, and having Jake punching another town ally wasn't going to help anyone. He had heard what happened between Jake and New Bern's own unofficial leader earlier today.

Jake shook of their hands and turned his attentions on his disobedient deputy. "I ordered you and my mom to stay at the clinic. Mom needs to be somewhere safe and you're in no shape…" Jake darkly growled.

"In no shape, Jake?" Jimmy may have laughed if the situation wasn't so dire. At present their town protector looked like the walking wounded. Jake's clothes were crusted in salt and dirt. His already dark features were now drawn painfully gaunt and his eyes were fixed with an angry black stare. For a moment, Jimmy believed he may have seen Jake's body sway where it stood and was going to call him on it, if it hadn't been for Stanley standing behind Jake, waving the deputy away from the presently taboo subject.

"I'll be fine, Jake." Jimmy carefully continued, using one of Jake's usual lines as he unconsciously touched the bandages on his head and neck wound. "And I tried to get your mother to stay, but when Mr. Perkins and the military showed up, she said she had her protection and more volunteers to take to you, and that was final." Jimmy looked away a moment. "I can't stop your mom, anymore than I can stop you when your head is set to something." Jimmy spoke earnestly to his boss and friend. "When it comes down to it, Jake, most of us usually end up hanging on for the ride with the two of you."

"He's got a point, Jake," Stanley assisted in the deputy's defense.

Jake gave a sidelong glare at Stanley through his unruly bangs and then to his deputy, before his mother and Mr. Perkins began to approach.

"Your mother told me some of the situation in the truck while coming here, but not all." Mr. Perkins gave a glance to the clever woman. "I am sorry for your situation. I've met Ms. Lisinski and found her to be a very capable and intelligent young lady. We will help in any way possible at this time to find her." The official could not repress the twinge to his nerves as the Sheriff solidly eyed him.

Jake nodded quietly and took the man's earnest pledge of assistance and then glanced over at his mother. Gail saw her son's appreciation; he just wasn't in a place to express it right then. She smiled softly to her son.

Swiftly, Jake turned from them and hobbled back to his map on the hood of Stanley's truck to decide where they needed the extra manpower. As Jimmy and Stanley quickly followed, Gail grasped the government official's shoulder. "If you're going to be helping my son, you better double-time it, and get those men over here."

Not for the first time since meeting the Green's, the government official wondered more and more, just who was in charge of Jericho.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

"Jake, maybe you should let me redress your wounds? They're probably soaked and dirty by now. Wouldn't surprise me if you pulled a stitch and …" Gail had been eyeing the streak of dark red blooming through her sons jeans.

"No, Mom." Jake answered quietly, not turning from his task folding up the map. Jake had just sent Col. Hoffman's men to where they were needed and now he was getting his group to the next search site on their quickly shrinking list. The only thing he wanted to deal with right then was getting them to that site, where Heather may be waiting for them to find her.

"Jake, not taking care of yourself is a poor way of helping Heather."

Jake stopped for a moment and then continued to grab the things around him before throwing them in the cab of Stanley's truck. He wasn't going to argue with her or concede. He'd tried staring her down earlier, when she went off on him about his physical health and was reminded of the futility of the act on his mother. Jake could be the dark man with the thousand yard stare to others, but never to his mom. And Gail Green was not easily intimidated, so at present, he was trying to block her out.

Gail shook her head sadly and narrowed her eyes. It was moments like these when she saw Jake's father in him. Both men had a way of shutting down when a hurt got too great and both lost the ability to take care of themselves, leaving their loved ones nervously waiting until they did once more. Johnston had had his deer stand; Jake only needed himself to hide in. "The two of you really are a pair."

Jake continued to pack the truck, pretending not to listen.

"I was going to say you and your father and the inherent Green stubbornness gene," Gail continued when her son did not turn to her. "But now that I think of it, the Lisinski gene has proven to be just as bull headed." Jake stopped and stood in the doorframe of the truck, back turned, and quietly listened.

"The last time she came out here with her crew, she came home past midnight, covered in salt and grime, cut up and exhausted, with her mind already on the next day's work. At the time, I thought she was just throwing herself into her work, so not to have to deal with you." Gail trailed off a moment. "Well, just like you, she fended off my care and concerns about how hard she was working and why—a lot more politely, I might add—and told me 'who else is going to do it?' I had no doubt, then and there, that she was family and that the two of you were a frustrating, stubborn match made in heaven."

Jake had called Heather stubborn on countless occasions when they worked together at the garage, but she always 'stubbornly' countered that it was just being determined. Jake leaned against the door frame, thinking of Heather just after a long day, hair pulled up with a pencil, coveralls that didn't quite fit her petite frame and a smudge of dirt that always seemed to find the tip of her nose. He could see her standing in the family's kitchen and politely fending off his mother's ingrained instinct to 'mother' and it put a smile on his stony face.

Jake felt a hand on his shoulder from behind, he covered it with his own and squeezed, accepting its comfort. Jake took one last look at the mines, he was going to call in his men, but then the image of a dingy Heather after a salvage run hit him full force. _'Why didn't I think of it?' _Jake quickly flung back open the cab door and grabbed the map from the dash.

"Jake?"

"Fred, this is Jake." Jake yelled into the radio. "Fred or anyone near him, get him to me on the hill, NOW!" Jake spread the map back over the hood and lay the radio on top of it, to stop the increasing wind from pulling it off.

"Jake?' Gail quickly made it to his side.

"We haven't found her yet, because the salt container she's in isn't on the list." Jake knew that whatever Heather's crew salvaged and then traded for goods, went through Heather, Eric and Gray so they could keep a better track of resources for the town. With the salt containers—well, Gray owned the mine, so he had had Heather and Eric make an even more detailed list of items salvaged those days in the mine's dump. Gray wanted to make sure that every last item the crew found was accounted for and that he—the town, was properly compensated for those items. Gray was the "Mayor", but he was still a business man. He was also good at underestimating a cunning ex-school teacher who was in need of more resources for her crew than the short sighted Mayor was willing to give.

Jake had been a bit surprised to realize the preacher's daughter had taken it upon herself to set up a victimless con—if you didn't count Gray—that could have given Jonah a run for his money. Jake had known for weeks now, and had a feeling she was beginning to know he knew about her Robin Hood-esc operation. Yes, he was the law—the revised, post-apocalyptic law—but he was also kind of proud of her resourcefulness. It wasn't just her kind smile and mechanical skills that had her crew following her.

Right now, he didn't have Heather to get the information he needed, but he had her right-hand man. For whatever reason neither of the unlikely criminals had thought to bring up the whereabouts of the extra containers earlier, Fred had some remembering to do.

The sound of a bike came up over the hill. Sean was driving the dirt bike at breakneck speed, with a very flustered Fred clutching onto him for dear life.

"Old Dude, stop squishing my guts! We're here."

Fred nearly fell off the back of the bike as soon as they stopped.

"Jake!" Fred caught himself and made it to the Sherriff. "What in Sam Hill…?"

"I know Heather skims salvaged items, to use for secret trades, when Gray doesn't give you guys enough to fix our town. Where did the excess salt containers go?" Jake demanded quickly.

Fred stared at Jake a little dumbfounded for a minute, before stuttering out a question. "H-how did ya figure…?"

"I wear a badge, but I'm not a saint. I've had other jobs before this one." Jake thought he heard his mother hiss, at both the information about Heather and the remembrance of his own shady past. "Where are those containers?" Jake loudly demanded as he stepped towards the rattled old man.

"Ya gotta understand, Jake. Me and Heather didn't say nothing about the other containers cause they're not even close to the search area or they been accounted for by the owner." When Jake didn't answer, Fred quickly continued. "We did a trade with Dale and it's been searched by me, and then Joe and Sue Moore traded us a monster John Deere they can't use no more, for a container and some window frames. Then Manny Hayward traded for one, said it was for storage, the hippie. Haven't seen him since the day before…" Fred rattled on.

"Hayward?" Jake interrupted.

"Yeah, Jake. But his house is way out of the way…"

"But his parents place isn't." Jake smacked down on the map. "They died this winter and its Manny's now. I know he's been using the fields. Son-of-a-bitch!" Jake yelled startling them all. "Heather said she smelled skunk. Constantino buried her in Manny's new pot locker." Jake crumpled up the map and threw it and himself into the truck, starting it and putting it in drive.

"Mom" he yelled out the window. "Get everyone to Hayward's farm, I found her!"

Gail nodded and quickly headed for Sean and his motorbike. "Come on, kiddo, scooch forward for the old lady."

Fred still stood there, finally dawning on him what Jake just said. "Jake? Ya knew about Manny's mary jane too?" But Jake was already gone.

Jake had known the Haywards since he was a child. They were a nice enough, hard-working farm couple. Manny was their late-in-life, underachieving, only child. The bombs hadn't changed Manny in the least and just proved the saying about cockroaches surviving a nuclear holocaust. With that said, it was no mystery why the slacker started showing interest in his dead parents' farm a couple weeks ago. Jake concluded that Manny was taking his indoor hobby to the great outdoors.

As for a salt container; whether you were a drug trafficker in Texas or a poppy grower in Kandahar, a buried hiding place for yourself or your stash was a desirable business asset. The amount of space Manny had plowed last week in the center of the back half of his fields told Jake Manny had found a new crop for his parent's farm. As of yet, Jake hadn't let on to the knowledge. He was just waiting for Manny to start planting before stepping in.

Raindrops began to fall on his windshield as he flew down the back road towards Hayward farm. The law breaker and fledgling lawman in him felt it in his gut and the man in him felt it in his heart, Heather was waiting for him on that farm.

Jake pulled onto the long dirt drive, thankful for the lack of dust left by the last storm and slowed the truck into the front field, parking it at the bottom of the hill that blocked the road from view of the house and barn. Jake checked his gun and lowered his radio before leaving the truck. There was a good chance that Constantino had put Manny permanently out of business and might still be waiting around. Or maybe Constantino took advantage of the town's distraction with the search and storm, and was presently running to the next territory. With Heather so close to him he could feel her, Jake wasn't going to take any chances.

Favoring his leg as he ran, Jake moved low across the barren field to the tree line at the edge of the hill, the winds whipping up the tops of the cottonwoods above, sending a clattering sound through the branches. Taking cover behind the trees, he rounded the property until he was just ten yards from the Hayward's back porch. The storm door was open, along with the screen door, its frame knocking up against the wall behind it in sporadic metallic slaps. Otherwise the home appeared devoid of movement. Quickly, he ran across the backyard and up the edge of the porch steps to the wall beside the door frame and then slid inside. It took only a minute to sweep the few rooms of the small one story home.

The place reeked of the heavy odor of pot and, the closer he stepped towards the front door, the smell of death. Pulse quickening, he stepped outside and off the small front porch, following the smell to the latticed crawl space. What greeted him was Manny, dead and unceremoniously packed up under his own porch, the neon yellow smiley face on his sneakers peeking from behind the lattice work.

Jake's eyes quickly scanned the grounds around him and then set off across the small barnyard to the barn's open double doors. Sweeping left, right and up, he entered the barn slowly, taking in every shadow around him until he felt it safe. Jake stood in the stillness of the old drafty structure, listening to the winds of the coming storm whistle through the exposed rafters and the sound of the increasing rain taping on the tin roof. He could almost hear…

Quickly the sound of engines carried on the wind as the vehicles powered by them pulled into the Hayward's farm and filled the front and back yards. Jake ran out to meet the drove of volunteers.

"Eric, where's Mom?"

"On her way with the rest of the military trucks. She told me about Manny; did you find him?"

Jake pointed towards the porch Sean and Stanley now stood beside.

"Damn!" Sean mumbled then turned away when Stanley gave him the eye. Manny was one of the many things he and Stanley never agreed on.

Russell ran up to Jake with Jimmy and some of the other men from New Bern and the military. "What's the plan, Jake?"

Jake took a quick inventory of his men and stood further up the slope of the barn's entrance. "We need to check every inch of this property. Manny meant for the container to be his stash locker, so look anywhere on high ground and under some sort of cover. As before, look for disturbed earth or any other sign of new work that was being done on the farm." Jake nodded to his brother and Eric began to split the volunteers into groups.

Jake ran back up into the barn, his heart pounding louder with each step. _'She's here.'_ His internal voice screamed.

Stanley followed after Jake and ran past him to push open the barn's other double doors, exposing a panoramic view of the farm's derelict wheat field, bending in waves under a threatening sky.

"Jake." Stanley ran out into the rain and then ducked around the corner when he spotted something. "Someone's been using the 'dozer." Stanley scanned the field. "Looks like it came from the north field?"

But Jakes eyes followed the tread track in the yard back into the corner of the barn. The light in the barn was poor and Jake had not noticed the mound of wet compost barely peeking over a line of musty hay bales, the wet rotting material sitting under the dry. And then as Jake moved closer he saw it, the torn sleeve of a dirty baby blue hospital scrub attached to the end of a long sliver of rusted metal, poking out from under the heap.

"SHE'S HERE!" Jake screamed. "HEATHER!" He yelled at the top of his lungs as he grabbed onto one hay bale after another, tossing them from his path. By the time the others got to him he was digging into the rotten compost at full bore, completely ignorant of his injuries or exhaustion.

"Jake, out of the way!" Even with the sound of the bulldozer's engine coming to life behind him, Jake continued to dig in the stench. "Jake, move!"

Jake snapped to just as someone grabbed the back of his shirt and yanked him clear. The bucket slid under the majority of the heap and Stanley picked it up and away. The entire time, Jake waited impatiently to jump back in, the scrap of light blue fabric still wound around his hand.

"Heather, we're coming!" Jake yelled over the bulldozer's engine and once it was shut down, Jake heard the most amazing sound…

"Jake!" The sound of Heather's muffled voice reached out to him, soothing him and firing him up, all in one jolt.

"Heather, I'm here!" Jake jumped back to the now partially visible storage lid and began to dig his hands around the edges to pry it up. Quickly his hands found a padlock. "Damn it!" Jake screamed.

"I have one, too, Jake." Eric yelled from the other side of the container lid.

"Jimmy, the cruiser…" Jake ordered.

"On it, Jake." Jimmy ran for the Sheriff's Department's skeleton key.

"Heather." Jake moved to the rusted hole that Heather had popped out her makeshift flag, and pushed his hand through to enlarge it. He lowered his arm to the elbow and when his hand was met by Heather's; he felt his world come back to him with one touch.

"Jake?" He heard her shaky voice from below. "I think I'm done taking pages from your book."

Jake smiled and closed his eyes, gripping her hands in his own, not sure whether to laugh or start crying. He had her back. _'Now we just have to get her out this damned box.'_

"Jake, got it." Jimmy clamped down on the padlock closest to him with the bolt cutters and snapped it off, then passed them to Jake. As soon as the second was cut, the lid was pulled back to reveal an extremely worn and dirty, but very much alive Heather.

"Oh God, Jake!" Heathers big blue eyes locked onto his for dear life. He'd found her.

"Give me your hands."

Heather reached for Jake's hands in a heartbeat and grabbed on tight. As soon as her body cleared her underground prison, she was consumed in Jake's arms. She buried her face into his neck, and breathed in a sob, knowing she was finally safe.

Jake slowly began to rock her body as they sat amongst the compost and dusty hay, neither aware of the crowd of friends and volunteers cheering and laughing excitedly around them. He was comforting her—he was comforting himself—hoping to get his heartbeat back down to a reasonable rate. All there was for Jake in that moment was the absolute realization that he needed this woman for the rest of his life.

The wind and rain blew in cold and Jake felt Heather shiver in his embrace. "Hey, you okay?" Jake whispered into the top of her dingy hair, clutching her closer to his chest.

"Yeah" she spoke tearily. "Feel like bawling like a baby, but I'm good."

Jake brought a hand up into her hair and kissed her forehead. "Me too." He whispered against her skin, "Me too." Jake looked over her head to the radio on the barn floor and allowed his emotions to sharpen into something he was going to need very soon.

'_I'm going to kill that son-of-a-bitch.'_

**TBC.**


	19. Chapter 19

**Disclaimer:** Yep, don't own Jericho or its character's, but the story line is mine along with the words I give them.

**Author's Note:** I really, really, really wanted to get this chapter posted before I left for the Aloha state this Friday. I hope the chapter didn't seem rushed because of it. I dug back into a couple past chapters: Ends and Beginnings, Leaders, and Boys Will be Boys. Also, I kept in mind with this chapter, this "dept being paid" and it seemed most of you were looking for a specific end to Constantino. Maybe it's not a big flashy scene, but it fit for me. Keep in mind I'm still getting use to writing action. Tips if you have any? Also brought back a "ghost" for Jake… Also, thanks to Midnight for your time and quick beta at the last minute. It was **VERY** much appreciated. I'll see you guys in two weeks.

**Warning:** Lot's of bad language and a pesky TBC.

**Chapter Eighteen: Debt Paid**

by Ann Pendragon

The wind and rain blew in cold and Jake felt Heather shiver in his embrace. "Hey, you okay?" Jake whispered into the top of her dingy hair, clutching her closer to his chest.

"Yeah" she spoke tearily. "Feel like bawling like a baby, but I'm good."

Jake brought a hand up into her hair and kissed her forehead. "Me, too." He whispered against her skin, "Me, too." Jake looked over her head to the radio on the barn floor and allowed his emotions to sharpen into something he was going to need very soon.

'_I'm going to kill that son-of-a-bitch.'_

Jake looked up to those around him and then found Eric's eyes. Eric understood; Jake and Heather needed a moment before it was decided what must be done next.

As Eric and Jimmy herded the crowd away, Jake caught the eyes of the men and woman of his town and gave a small nod, his eyes full of gratitude and thanks while continuing to hold 'their girl' in his arms. The military began to regroup, along with Russell's men, waiting for the rest of their people to get to the farm so they could continue their search for a wanted man.

Heather closed her eyes and focused on the heartbeat she lay against. She felt herself shake again and when Jake's arms tightened around her, she felt him tremble too. Placing her hand on his chest, she pushed herself back just enough to meet his eyes and found their depths full of emotion.

"I knew you would find me…" Heather tenderly touched Jake's jaw and gave a teary grin, but quickly frowned when she felt his body stiffen as he looked away. Heather firmly directed his face back to hers and moved up enough to kiss his lips. When she felt the rigor of his muscles release and his arms pull her in closer, she was warmed by an overwhelming sense of satisfaction, knowing she could sooth his guilty thoughts with a kiss. She pulled back and whispered over his lips, "I'm okay. I'm here." And then was pulled into another tender embrace.

The lovers slowly pulled from one another and Heather began to look around her surroundings. "Where** is** here?"

"The Hayward farm, Manny's place." Jake cleared his throat and watched realization settle on her face.

"But Manny wanted the container for his house…" Heather trailed off and looked away.

She had planned to tell Jake about the little side business that had kept her garage on its feet—sooner or later. Now she had wished she told him sooner. She was angry with herself, now. All along she had had the clues to where she could be found and didn't realize it.

"Manny was using his dead parents' fields as a fledgling pot farm. After I got Fred to admit to you guys' under the table dealings, I put two and two together."

Heather's cheeks reddened. "We never had enough supplies, Jake. You know that. And Gray is impossible…" Heather trailed off in frustration and took a breath. A part of Heather never forgot Gray's involvement in her friend Mr. Rennie's death in the mines, the day of the fallout. And she knew Gray remembered too. It had gotten to the point where Gray had Heather make her requests through Eric, when repairs or salvage was done by her crew at the mines. "You're not mad?"

Jake shook his head and let out a shaky laugh as answer, before pulling her back into his embrace. "We'll talk later." Jake gently pulled away and painfully began to stand, pulling her up with him. "Come on; let's get you back to town…"

Just as Heather made it to her feet, she heard the hiss of Jake's radio, still amongst the compost and musty hay. Slowly, she reached down and picked up the object and turned it over in her hands, focusing in on why she had the sudden urge to throw it.

"Heather?"

"He tried to kill me…again." Heather's voice drifted out. She continued to stare at the device, feeling the sickening weight of what just happened to her, to them, settling back in. "My own biological—"

"Heather…" Jake wished he could make this hurt become forgotten for her, but knew it was a part of her life she would always have to carry. "Heather, he isn't any part of you that counts. You know that." Jake now held her arm that held the radio. "He's a sick, twisted excuse for a human being who is going to pay for what he's done. I promise you."

Heather's angry eyes met Jake's resolute stare, taking his promise for what it was. And she knew he was right. Philip Constantino was nothing to her but a nightmare; one she could wake up from.

'_I'm still here.'_ Heather told herself. _'He failed to hurt me, hurt us. He failed…'_

Heather drew the radio to her lips before Jake could stop her. "You failed!" She yelled out over the airways. "I'm still here, you bastard…" Heather trailed off as Jake pulled the radio from her hands and pulled her to his chest as she shook.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Nearly three and a half miles from the Hayward farm, on a cow path back road, a very angry and brutal man was growing desperate.

"A fucking deer!" Philip Constantino slammed down the bent hood of his stolen, and now totaled, car. Not a single deer for sixty miles around the entire winter. Then today of all days, one magically appears just so it can run out in front of his getaway car. "Fuck!" He screamed into the rain.

Constantino leaned against the tree he'd hit and touched the rag he had wrapped over his head wound, weighing his options. He should have been in the next state by now, but instead, he had been unconscious these few precious hours of escape, slumped over the wheel in a ditch. He wasn't really surprised he hadn't been found during that time.

The road he was traveling was out of the way, even for the residents of Jericho. _'Small fucking miracle.'_ Looking around, he knew where he was and the irony was not lost on him. He use to come here with Jericho's old Mayor to hunt many years ago.

'_I'll hide the car and follow the river bed down bellow the hill. I can get to Fredericktown in a few days, steal a car there...'_ Loud cracks of thunder pulled him from his planning and set a deep scowl across his features as he watched the storm front off to the southwest grow darker. _'If I don't drown first.'_

The only consolation he felt at present was that his daughter was dead, or close enough to it; and his enemies were still wasting their time looking for the body. Constantino held on to that belief and grinned with grim satisfaction as he got up from the tree and went back to the car to retrieve his gun and pack. _'Gotta tell ya, Green,' _he shook his head. _'Don't see much future for that proud bloodline of yours.'_ He scoffed. _'All you got left is an old widow, a yes man and a fuck-up with a badge. Wouldn't have wanted my blood mixin' with that anyhow.'_ Constantino chuckled satisfyingly at his own sick joke, until Karma interrupted with the last laugh.

"You fail—"

Furrowing his brow, he reached back into the car and grabbed the radio from the floor.

"I'm still here, you bastard…" The familiar voice trailed out into static on the nearly drained radio.

'_I failed…? Thought her radio would have been gone by now?' _Arrogance fought against better judgment, and won. Constantino answered the call…

"Now, Ms. Lisinski. Should you be wasting your precious batteries on me? I'm sure your failed hero would like to hear your voice one—last—time." The radio was silent for a minute and then he thought he could hear the sound of sobbing and laughing on the other end. _'The girl is cracking up in that box!'_

"Failed?" He heard her voice regain control. "You failed. Jake found me, you horrible man…"

Constantino felt his body go numb as it teetered back against the car door, his head reeling with the realization. _'Impossible. IMPOSSIBLE!'_

"Do you hear me…?" He heard her voice boom through the static as he lowered the radio and blankly stared out ahead at nothing. All of this was for nothing. All the risk it took to grab the little bitch, and then the luck in finding such a clever way to dispose of her.

'_I should have just put a bullet in her head and called it a day.' _Constantino swore bitterly, hind sight now a perfect 20/20._ 'And I should have had my sniper finish off the Green whelp the day his daddy bought it.'_

"Constantino." A deep voice came over the static filled air, filling him with the strong urge to bash the radio into the car roof. This wasn't how this would end. These people took away his world and left him to settle for revenge; and now he didn't even have that?

'_No, this is not how this goes down. Green doesn't get to win, he will not walk away with his girl and his town and his life, while I have nothing…'_

"Well done." Constantino answered, biting down on each word bitterly. "Well done. Jake Green saves the day once more."

"I'm coming for you…" The cold voice on the other end promised.

"I don't doubt that, son, not at all." Constantino stood from the car, shouldering his pack and grabbed his gun before beginning his walk towards the familiar path at the edge of the woods. "But who will you be coming as? The Sheriff your fair town seems to think you are, the man your dead daddy would have touted you to be? Or maybe the man we both know you are soldier."

He reached the trail head at the woods line and peered down onto the darkening path. "Johnston never could shut up about his boy Jake when we use to hunt together. My boy, top of the class at Embry-Riddle; my boy, the great hunter who took down an eight-point deer after sitting in the frost for twelve hours when he was thirteen…" he took a breath. "How about you come and show me those skills of yours, Green? See if you can bring in another big kill."

He knew the boy wanted him dead as much as he wanted the same for him. He counted on it. "See you soon, Jake." Revenge being the only thing he had left, Phillip Constantino continued down the dark path of his intentions.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

"The call places our fugitive within a four mile radius people…"

The last military truck had showed up on the farm property. Col. Hoffman was gathering his men to 'begin' their search on what information Jericho's Sheriff and Russell Williams and his crew could give. And that was everything but Constantino's location.

"Jake, you can't do this on your own."

Jake turned to his brother, and then to Stanley, not stopping with his quiet preparations. _'Don't they understand I should have ended this long before now? I allowed others to do what I should have finished, what I had promised to do. And we all paid for that mistake. This is my responsibility now. I tried doing this the right way, now I need to do this my way.' _

Jake checked his clip once more and holstered his weapon as he watched the New Bern men fall in line with the soldiers out in the rain, catching Russell's eye. Jake knew that Russell knew he was holding back information when they briefed Col. Hoffman on the search and the area. To his credit, he did not call him on it nor did he bat an eye when Jake asked for him to assist the Colonel in the continued search in his place.

"Jake?"

"I heard you, Eric." Jake stepped up to his little brother, laying a heavy hand on his shoulder and reining him in with his eyes. "We have another storm coming this way and I need to know my family is going to be safe…"

"Jake…"

Jake heard the resignation in his brother's voice and knew he would do as he asked. Just wasn't going to like it.

"Get Mom and Heather back to town, brother. I'm counting on you to keep them safe." The brothers' eyes met and it was once again understood the other's job in their family and in their town. Eric was the reliable support and Jake was their protector. It's just how it had to be.

Eric nodded his head and both men looked over to their mother, Mimi and Bonnie, who had all come in with the last military truck, sitting and fussing over Heather at the other side of the barn. Heather and Gail hadn't let go of one another since the older woman had ran into the barn and ensnared her adopted daughter in a crushing embrace.

"Jake, Eric is right. You can't go after this guy alone." Maybe Eric was going to back down from his brother, but Stanley needed his friend to see some sense. "I could…"

"No. You can't." Jake forcefully interrupted, eyeing his loyal friend and then turned his attention back to Heather and his Mom, and then to Mimi and Bonnie. Mimi had just looked up from talking to Heather and met her husband's and then Jake's stare. Jake gently nodded his head to his best friend's new bride, noting the concern in her eyes, and then looked back to Stanley.

"You once reminded me that I was not a farmer." Jake's lips twitched with a brief grin and stepped closer to his friend, becoming deadly serious just as quickly. "You are not a soldier, Stanley. Maybe circumstances made it so for a little while, but you're not a killer. That is what I do."

Stanley felt the twinge of his friend's words, but he knew what Jake was doing and why. The same reason Jake nearly sacrificed himself covering Stanley at the end of the battle between Jericho and New Bern. "You're a protector, not a killer, Jake. Circumstances have been a bitch to you too." Stanley watched a shadow darken his friend's features and then quickly hide back away.

"Help Eric, Stanley." Jake continued. "Help Eric and Jimmy keep our town safe for the next few hours. If I'm not done by the storm's break, I'll take cover and wait it out."

Stanley looked away and nodded. "You're hard being friends with sometimes, you know."

Jake eyed his friend sadly then smiled, reaching his hand to his shoulder. "I know. But I keep things interesting. God forbid you get bored." Jake watched his friend stifle a chuckle and shake his head, before he walked away.

By now, Heather and his mother had stood up from the bench by the stalls and separated from Mimi and Bonnie as they went to Stanley's side.

"Mom…"

"I know, son. It's something you have to do." Heather had filled her in on the call between them and Constantino, and knew what would come next. She also knew better than to try and stop her son, so she gave him her support no matter how much it pained her to stand back and see him go.

Jake nodded his head and kissed his mother, knowing who he had to face next.

"You are still under standing orders to come back in one piece and-and…" Heather stammered, bravely trying to act strong. She wasn't given a chance to continue with her nervous tirade. Jake walked right up to her body and pulled her into a passionate kiss that left her no doubt of his intention to come back to her; and as quick as humanly possible.

"Always do." He whispered against her lips and then rubbed his nose tenderly against hers, closing his eyes for but a moment. "Love you."

Jake quickly stepped back from Heather as Gail stepped back to her side and placed a comforting arm around her. Taking one last look at the two women who shared his heart, he turned away and headed out of the barn and into the rain. Just as he neared the old four-wheel he had confiscated from his brother, a uniform walked in front of its door.

"Jimmy, you are my right hand man and I need you to—"

"Protect the town." The deputy finished for his Sheriff. "I know, Jake. Also know you're not going to accept my help taking in Constantino, so I'm not gonna ask."

Jake lowered his head with Jimmy's choice in words. He wasn't bringing in Constantino. Not unless it was strapped to the hood of his car. This wasn't about justice now, this was far more personal. Jake's hand went to his belt. "I can't wear this, Jimmy." Jake reached out and placed his star in the deputy's steady hand. "I can't be this man today."

Jimmy looked down at the symbol of duty and honor in his hands; the mantle his father had carried, that he carried, with so much pride and respect. And then he eyed the man before him who had come to represent those things to him with each passing day. _'You are this man, Jake.'_ He covered the star with his large fingers and placed it inside his jacket and stepped away from the Blazer's door. "I'll keep it for you till you return."

Jake met his friend's eyes and then jumped into the vehicle. It was time to pay a debt owed.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Under Gail's expansive wings and watchful eye, Heather was immediately taken to the still bustling clinic as soon as Eric and Jimmy got them to town. Several more injured citizens had come in throughout the day. Others were gun-shy of the next storm and were staying near the shelter at the clinic.

Heather gave no sign of resistance when she was steered to an exam room for a quick check up and quietly complied with all that was asked of her once there. Gail understood what the young woman was going through, being a veteran of caring for Green men. So when Heather was declared no worse for wear, physically, Gail took her by the hand and led her to the relative privacy of the locker rooms.

Heather noticed the direction they were going and did not complain. "I do kinda reek, don't I?" she said flatly, as she absently rubbed at the sleeveless side of her destroyed scrub top.

Gail turned and gave the girl a sad, warm smile and pulled her closer as they walked down the hall. "Come on."

Along their way, they were met with warm smiles and reaching hands. More than words could say, Heather was grateful for what her town had done for her today, but with each well meaning and sympathetic touch, she felt her shoulders want to give. It was a relief when they got behind the closed door of the locker room.

"Let me go find you some towels and clothes." Gail walked off, leaving Heather near the sinks.

Heather looked at her tired reflection and wiped at some of the dirt on her face. _'I look like a drowned rat.' _She felt a light chuckle that promised to turn into tears and pushed the feeling down. She was exhausted and scared and worried so much about Jake that she wanted to crawl out of her skin, but she fought the inevitable breakdown that was to come.

'_Shower, I just need a shower.'_ She stepped away from the sinks and sat down on a bench to take off her shoes. A hand came down on her shoulder, making her jump.

"Oh, honey. I am so sorry." Gail took a seat next to her and placed the towels in her own lap.

"'Sokay" Heather tried to smile and turned away.

Gail nodded and rummaged through the things she brought. "I went to my locker to find you some socks and found this…" Gail pulled a folded blue dress from the stack and sat it down between them. "You were such a vision in it last night."

It was hard for Heather to believe it had only been last night she had wore it. So much had happened, wonderful and horrific, and it all seemed to be weighing in on her now. She had gained so much, and almost lost it all. And now the threat of losing Jake… "Thanks" her voice was only able to reach a whisper now.

Both women were silent, picking at the fabric of the dress between them.

"I have a confession." Gail spoke determinedly. "A confession of a nosy mother."

Heather looked to the other woman questioningly, forgetting their present situation for the moment. "Confession?"

Gail gave a sidelong glance and raised her brows. "I eavesdropped on you and Jake's conversation the night of his father's wake.

"Oh." Heather quickly looked away, beginning to recall the conversation—more like confessions in their own right—she and Jake had shared that night under the stars. Even though it had been such a sad solemn day, Heather looked back and saw that night as the beginning of the best chapter in her life. The night she agreed to live with the Green's.

"I was trying to get some of the kitchen straightened up before heading to bed, and I heard the two of you out there on the porch chatting away. Reminded me of how Johnston and I use to do when the stars were out and the night warm." Gail smiled with the happy memory.

"Well, instead of turning from the window, I listened." Gail worried her hands. "That night I heard my son open himself to you in a way I had never known him to try for anyone. Not even his old mom." Gail smiled. "He took down some of those industrial-strength barriers of his' and trusted you enough to give you a glimpse at the worst of himself; when on most days he even tries to hide his best." Gail shook her head, thinking of the behavior of her private son.

"I didn't really know you, then. I had asked you earlier to stay with us, because I knew you were Jake's friend and I was grateful for all you had done for my family and this town. But when I heard you make my boy laugh at himself on such a sad day, heard the light in his voice, I asked you to stay once more, only then it was out of faith. I was given a bit of hope that night, and faith that my son had stumbled onto that one thing I always wanted for him—the chance to be happy…." Gail sniffed as she picked at the fabric of the dress, while Heather continued her silence, now watching the other woman. "I didn't realize at the time what a wonderful daughter and friend I would be getting out of my little plan…"

Heather was at a loss for words from Gail's heartwarming confession. When Gail finally met her eyes, Heather reached out to her and drew her into a strong hug.

"Oh, honey, it's Jake. He's going to be okay." It was the only thing Gail allowed herself to believe.

"I know." Heather bit down on the torrent of tears she wanted to let go and pulled from Gail quickly to stand and gather her things. "Could-could I put the dress back in your locker for now?"

Gail nodded at the request, wiping her eyes as she stood. She felt the younger woman's need to fall apart in privacy and would not begrudge her that right. "How about I let you get washed up. When you're ready, you can find me…" Gail thought of all the people still milling around the clinic, all the people she could keep occupied with until her son returned. "Well, just yell for me at the nurse's desk, okay?"

"Okay." Heather nodded her head as the other woman left and then went to place the dress back in the locker. Soon, she stood in a shower stall, her dingy clothes stripped away. Heather tried to focus on the words of hope Gail had given her, but felt her mind slip to darker thoughts; of where Jake was right then, and who he was to face. the crushing need to have him safe quickly consumed her heart.

'_Please God, do what you will with me, but please not Jake. He's a good man and we all need him.' _Heather bent her head under the water's spray and closed her eyes._ 'And I love him…'_ And then she allowed her tears to follow the dirt down the drain.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Jake checked his gun once more and felt for the backup on his good leg. The rain was falling steady now and the woods out ahead of him were growing dark and foreboding. Jake had parked the Blazer just off the back road that skirted his family's property. Several yards ahead of him stood the trailhead of his father's hunting path; three large stones standing sentry at the edge of the wood. His fathers 'straight and narrow', Jake used to joke so long ago.

'_Cause it was the best way for me, Son.'_

Jake stepped from the vehicle and moved to the top of the trail and looked down the shadowy path that led to his father's deer stand, and the man he had come to kill. His enemy expected him to come alone with vengeance in his heart, to this place his father had found sacred. He would expect Jake to be compelled by that vengeance, the obligation of family, maybe even the badge. Constantino would be right on all accounts, but Jake would be damned if he was going to make it easy to see him coming. Jake turned away from the known path before him and started down one of his own.

'_You always took your own way.'_

'_Don't you mean the hard way, Dad?'_ Jake climbed through the boulder strewn path, wincing each time his leg twinged from the wear.. _'It's the only way __**I **__know how.'_

Jake reached the edge of an embankment; the rain was getting heavy and the ground slick. He bent down to the edge and allowed his body to slide down the muddy hill in a controlled fall till he hit the ground beside the creek bed below. He could only bite down on the pain when his leg slammed into the mud. Standing again, he squinted into the rain to survey the woods around him and waded across the growing waterway to the tall brush on the other side.

Maybe it was the fever he felt growing on his skin, but with each step closer he came to his grizzly task, Jake swore he felt his father with him and not just his words in his head. It was almost as if he was a child again, before he and his dad began growing into strangers. He was once again at his father's side, out on a hunt…

'_You may have chosen a broken path, Son, but it's taken you the right way. You travel that way now, for just reasons. Do not doubt that, Jake.' _

'_I am here now, because of hate, not because this is just. That man killed you, tried to kill my Heather, Jimmy…' _The list went on._ 'He has threatened my world one too many times and now I am going to end him. This isn't going to be justice for me; this is revenge your son does this for. _

'_You are protecting our family, son.' _Jake felt his father's voice echo through him as he moved through the rain._ 'That is all this needs to be.'_

Jake stopped within view of the clearing that led to the deer stand and crouched low in the thick thatch of saplings, burying himself in their shadowy cover. _'Now it is time to wait.'_

Most would believe Jake Green did not have the ability to 'wait'. Always charging out into the next situation, the next crisis, with only his gut leading him like a charging bull. Maybe so, but it was not how he began. Not who he had originally been before his life started to gather more mistakes than victories. Back to when he was a boy in these woods, watching, waiting, understanding that if you waited long enough your quarry would makes its move and the kill would be yours.

Jake became a stone. The rain poured off of his body and the close rumble of thunder surrounded him, but he did not move. Jake separated the sound of the rain from his slowing heartbeat, and his heartbeat from anything not meant to be in his father's place in the woods. And then he heard it—the footfall of a man and then the click of a gun being cocked.

"Jake, I know you're out there, boy." Jake heard Constantino's voice bounce around the clearing over the sound of the rain.

The first shot went through the trees to his left, missing him by several feet. Somehow, Constantino knew he was near, but was unsure of the location. Jake remained still and allowed the other man his fishing expedition. The ex-mayors impatience would become Jake's gain. To his three o'clock he saw a glint of light; and then saw it once more as another bullet traveled his way, ricocheting off a nearby boulder and sending it over the flesh of his back.

Jake hissed out in pain and dropped down low with the searing pain in his lower back and crawled further back into shadowy brush. No time for pain, he began to creep towards the origin of the last gun blast, before Constantino changed his own position.

"Did you say something, Sheriff? Hard to hear with the rain…" Once again, Constantino boomed. "I was thinking about our girl, Jake. Seems like it's true how little girls go looking for a man like dear old dad…"

"I'm nothing like you…" Jake felt the bile in his stomach churn. Another shot rang out about ten yards away from a new location in the boulders across the clearing.

"Who the hell do you think you are now, Green? You **are** me." Constantino yelled out. "Dangling Gray like a marionette, the whole town in the palm of your hands trusting you with their lives, and not having a blessed fucking clue as to what you really are. At least I was the law before the world went to hell in a hand basket. But you…a fucking juvenile delinquent turned mercenary. Oh yes, Jake, I know a little about your time away. Not enough, but that won't matter much after tonight."

Another shot rang out, this time further off.

"Do you think anyone in your town would tout you as their golden boy if they knew the fraud that you are? Do ya think that playing hero, screwing the town sweetheart and being Johnston's boy—any of that would change how they look at you if they knew the kind of man you really are?"

Not all of Constantino's shots missed their mark on Jake, but they didn't have the stopping power the man who made a life of bullying others had hoped for. Constantino was just digging himself a deeper grave.

"Boy, oh boy, your daddy would be proud of you…" Constantino screamed with glee and got ready for another shot into what he believed was Jake's position.

"My father was proud!"

Constantino didn't have time to turn around and aim, before he came face to fist with Jake Green's hand, smashing his nose and sending him backwards into the mud, his gun flying out behind him. The young man's heaving silhouette loomed over the ex-mayor, gun now expertly trained down on his future kill.

"Get up," growled the dark figure. Lightning shot out over the sky, illuminating the fires of hell burning bright in his sharp, cold glare. "GET UP!"

Constantino's eyes stayed trained on Jake's, matching their fierce intensity, as he cautiously moved backward in the mud to regain his footing along with his fallen weapon. Quickly, a loud shot rung out and landed into the ground beside Constantino's hand, stopping the action.

Jake cocked his gun once more. "Get…up." Jake bit off the words coldly, aiming his gun right between Constantino's rounding eyes.

There was no doubt in the older man's mind that he was going to die, but he prayed for one more chance to take the other man with him. He got it when Jake stepped back from him, gun still trained, and his right leg wobbled on the uneven ground. Constantino kicked out and struck the injured leg, setting off Jake's gun as he stumbled to the ground. Constantino desperately scurried backwards in the mud towards his own weapon. And just as he found it, he spun around to aim and was met once again by his enemy's cold black eyes.

Both men fired…

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

As night fell on Jericho, the storm that had surged and threatened from the west blew itself out before it even began, and its remnants passed over the land, drenching it in a slow steady rain.

The street remained empty. After the storm had died and word from Fort Liberty confirmed the storm cell's dissipation, many in town found their way back to their homes. Those whose homes or health had suffered in the earlier storm remained near the clinic or around the two churches down the same street.

Presently, there had been no word from the military or from Russell's men who still searched for New Bern's escaped con. And there was still no word from Jake.

Heather, like Gail, had found diversions in the clinic, but tinkering with minor repairs and preparing bandages no longer kept their growing worries at bay. Heather felt a sweater go over her shoulders as she stood up from under the nurse's station and its web of wires and was met by the older woman's tired grin.

"Come on, honey. We're going across the street…"

The women were soon followed out the main exit by Eric and Mary, along with the two deputies who had been left as guard at the clinic by Deputy Taylor earlier in the evening. They quickly moved through the rain and across the street to the church, not seeing the dark figure trudging from behind the clinic after them.

Inside, the church was dimly lit for a late Sunday night gathering. No sermon was being held, but a hymn was being played on the old Spinet Upright at the edge of the stage and the sounds of comfort flowed from the pews.

"Saved you guys a pew."

Gail smiled as Stanley stood up and gently smacked the pew in front of his family and the Taylor's for the new comers. They had all come to send out their prayers tonight. They were all waiting for Jake.

Gail followed after Eric and Mary and settled into the spot in front of Jimmy and Margaret Taylor, their sleeping children in their laps. Heather nodded and tried to smile at her friends, but felt it die on her lips. She hesitated before sitting amongst her loved ones and looked around the room, feeling not quite right.

With a loud creak, the double doors of the old country church were pulled open, allowing a stream of chilled wind down the isle. The piano playing stopped as a drenched figure moved from the dark, to be illuminated by the backlight of the clinic across the street.

"Jake!" Gail cried excitedly, when she recognized her son.

Worn and muddy, soaked to the bone, Jake's soulful eyes quickly found his needed destination, his haven, his home. Without a word he stumbled down the aisle and into Heather's arms. As quick as he felt her hands around him, he went to his knees with exhaustion and wrapped his arms around her waist with what strength he had left, burying his face into the warmth of her stomach and breathed in.

"Jake!" Heather stroked his tangled locks and held his wet trembling body tight, allowing her joyful tears to fall. He'd come back to her. _'Thank you…'_

"Those radiated ants are a bitch." Heather felt him mutter into the cotton of her scrub. She gave a teary chuckle and kissed the top of his head, pulling him closer.

"Jake?" She now felt the heat radiating off his body. "Jake, you're burning up." Jake did not answer her, but tried to pull himself closer into her embrace. Heather looked down at the arm she held across his shoulders and found it red. "Jake!" she exclaimed. "You're bleeding!"

"I'm fi—" But Jake didn't finish as he slipped into a comfortable haze while looking up into Heather's eyes. Then the world went black.

TBC.


	20. Chapter 20

Fellow Jericho Fans-  
When I plane hopped back from Hawaii, I landed into a swirling mess of RL, along with the holidays and everything that entails. I have not forgotten Chapters. The next chapter for my series is nearly complete and I hope to snag the time to put in on the boards before the new year. I will be dealing with Jake's past in this one.Thank you for your patientce and have a happy holiday.  
--Ann Pendragon 


	21. Chapter 21

**Disclaimer:** Yep, don't own Jericho or its character's, but the story line is mine along with the words I give them.

**Authors Note:** I am very sorry for making all of you wait. RL took precedence over my pleasure, but now I have returned. This chapter will have hints of _Chapter Three: Ends and Beginnings_ and _Chapter Eighteen:_ _Debt Paid, _and a return to Jericho's pilot episode and a bit from episode _The Day Before. _ As always, this is AU, and I've taken some creative license. This chapter wasn't beta read, due to my anxiousness to get the next bit of the story to you. Sorry Beta buds. So please, if something hits ya wrong please critique. I have thick skin and may wish to beta later.

Also a reminder that this **is **my therapy, but not from the show ending prematurely. THE VIEWERS ROCK! This will become my H/J therapy for an upcoming season that seems to have chosen another pairing. Oh well. It's great to be able to manipulate fiction to your own bidding. Long live fan fiction. And the next chapter is now in the typing stage, so expect it in about a week.

**Warning**: Language. Melodrama run-a-muck, along with grammar and spelling.

**Chapter 19:** **Things I've Done**

by Ann Pendragon

'_Boy, get up!' The voice prodded._

'_Granddad?' Jake mumbled, trying to open his eyes against the bright light that glowed just beyond his lids, and found the action impossible. Even if it wasn't the case, he still wouldn't have bothered pulling himself from the languid waking sleep he found himself. Jake felt warm, like he was wrapped in his sleeping bag during an early morning at the lake, not the burning hot that had been weighing heavy over his being. _

_Jake took in a leisurely breath of cool, crisp, clean air and felt its soothing balm. It smelled of fall mornings, of contentment and calm. 'Let me be, Granddad. Let me rest just a little while longer.' Jake now felt the cooling air against his cheek. 'Maybe I can stay…' _

'_Like hell you are, boy. Like hell! Ya ain't stayin on my watch, so you better just git!' EJ Greens voice now rose to a unobliging roar in Jakes ear, starling him, but not raising him from the warmth he found himself wandering further and further into._

'_My boy came too early' EJ's voice continued doggedly. 'I'll be damned if I'm gonna let you stay. Maybe we saved you a seat, but I aint gonna pull it out for ya now. It's not your time…'_

'_My time?' The weight of his grandfather's words began to sink past the comfort of Jake's warm haze. 'Wait—Granddad! Where am …?'_

'_Where you have no right bein right now…'_

"Jake?"_ Another voice entered his mind and a presence could be felt at his side. The air around him began to change and Jake found himself pulled to that voice._

"Heather?"

'_Go on boy.' Jake heard his grandfather once more. The old mans tone had softened. 'Keep following that girl of yours. Don't make her wait. We'll always be here when you need us…'_

"Granddad…"Jake felt his voice catch.

The bright light that had held his eyes hostage now dimmed, as the nostalgic smell of fall leaves and cool water was abruptly replaced by the very real odors of sweat and antiseptic. But when he finally opened his eyes to the day light, the vision before him could very well have been the best of dreams.

Heathers wide blue eyes looked down into Jakes half opened lids. She took in a soul reaching breath of relief. "Jake!"

"Hey." Jake's voice croaked out, managing a week smile that faltered when he tried to move his body and was met by pain in the process.

"Try not to move too much, Jake. You're still healing…" Heather tried returning his smile but it faltered on her lips. Jake caught it immediately. He reached out to her, but felt the strength in his arm wane. She reached for his hand halfway and brought it to her lips, before holding it to the side of her face.

"How long?" Jake brushed his thumb over her cheekbone and into her hair.

"Nearly two days." Heather laced her fingers into his and pulled their joined hands down to the bed, clearing her throat. "You had ripped open some of your stitches and then your new injury…" _'That man shot you.'_ "You had lost some blood and then the fever you were running, coupled with exhaustion…"

Heathers voice trailed off from her grim laundry list, thinking of what Dr. Kenchy had had told them once Jake was stabilized. _'Jake's body had no other choice but to give out when it did. Its owner didn't have enough sense to stop on his own volition.'_

"Fever?"

"104." Heather quietly answered, looking to their joined hands. "Infection had set into the wounds in your leg…"

At this, Jake quickly glanced down to the foot of the bed and let out a nearly inaudible sigh of relief at the sight of **two** legs under the sheets. Heather realized his action and felt a chill go down her spine for what could have been. She swallowed hard and went on.

"Mr. Perkins had one of Colonel Hoffman's men send penicillin to the clinic not long after you were brought in, said it would be taken out of our next rations." Heather paused. She needed him to know, if he didn't already, just how close he came to loosing more than his leg. How close what they just began together, almost ended. "If he hadn't sent the medicine, Jake…" Heather faltered and Jake squeezed her hand as tight as he could.

"I'm sorry." He meant to say it for all the things that had happened, all the things he was unable to stop, and for making her worry. But found his mind quickly wander to another reason; one that had secretly preyed on his mind since knowing it was to be him that would kill Phillip Constantino in the end. Maybe the man was only a sperm donor, at best, to Heather, but he was still Heather blood. And the fact she had to go through this. That thought alone, was where the sorry was born. "I'm sorry for everything."

Heather watched his big brown eyes turn from her now questioning stare. She somehow sensed what "everything" Jake was apologizing for and quickly found that it angered her.

"Sorry?" Heather said it a little louder than she had intended and it brought Jakes eyes back on hers. "Sorry for once again thinking of everyone else's safety but your own, Jake?" Her voice remained firm, but the anger was already being dulled by her love for him. "Sorry for adding another five years to everyone who loves you and my first gray hair?" Jake kept his silence; hurting dark eyes met now tearful blue. "Sorry for being the one left standing—for coming back to me?"

Jake tugged on Heathers hand with what strength he had, before she could say anymore. She instinctively moved into his arms, excepting the comfort.

"Shhh" he whispered into her hair while she began to cry into his neck. He wished everything to not hurt her, not worry her ever again, but knew the option was not his, nor ever would be. _'I'm always going to hurt her.'_

"Oh, honey!" Gail Greens voice broke her son from his somber thoughts and the lovers from their embrace.

"Mom."

Gail took to her sons other side and planted a kiss to his forehead and then felt it with the back of her hand. "Much better." She partly mumbled to herself as she took a quick inventory of her now conscious son. Heather turned away to wipe at her eyes, while Gail took Jakes pulse and then began to fish in her pocket for the thermometer. Gail noticed Jake watching the girl the entire time. She smiled sadly at the two, understanding she had come in during a very emotional moment between them. Being that Heathers raised voice was what alerted Gail to Jakes room in the first place.

Gail reached for her sons shoulder and lightly squeezed. "Don't you worry about Jake, honey. He won't be rushing off anywhere, defending anything or fixing anything till **we** allow him to." She watched her son taking interest in the bed sheet in his hand and Heather gave her a tentative grin. Gail had fought the urge to chew out her son once more for his latest attempt at trying to kill himself, but felt the job had already been done by the other woman just moments ago.

It felt like a torch was being passed for Gail when she looked between the two and to her surprise it didn't bother her as much as she had expected. She gave Heather a fortifying smile for good measure and then reached for her hand in support. _'You're going to need it, honey.' _

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

As the day wore on, Jake fell in and out of sleep in between visits from half the town and the clinic staffs prodding and poking. To his relief, his mother had given Heather a similar prescription for rest and had herded her to the staffs bunk room two doors down the hall, for some quiet. It was Heathers first real sleep since—well, a very long time. She promised to go as long as he did the same. The promise wasn't hard for Jake. He had neither the intention nor strength to leave his bed, let alone try another AMA anytime soon. Just keeping up with the string of people that dodged past his mother with news on the town was tiring enough.

"…without Heather helping out, it's going a little slower, but power is coming back throughout the town. And you'll be glad to know, Gray and Mr. Perkins have been getting on well..." Jake eyed his brother making the younger man grimace. Jake did not find the news all that comforting and his brother should have known better.

Gray was gullible and Mr. Perkins and those he represented, "the new government", wanted more than just Jericho's cooperation. Having Gray playing alone with the government official did not set well with Jake at all. At least, not till Jake had a better idea just what Mr. Perkins full intentions were. Maybe Jake was grateful for the albeit, late offer of manpower during Heathers search and the penicillin for his infection, but he wasn't about to count the man as trusted. In hindsight, he was just glad he held off punching the man.

"However you may feel about Mr. Perkins, he said a great deal in your favor. Like half the town, he seems to be under the impression that you're close to indestructible..."

Jake scoffed and shook his head, dismissing the thought. The present pain and weakness in his body let him know otherwise.

Eric grinned a little. Honestly, he'd thought that of his brother on many occasions. Maybe not indestructible, but damned lucky was certain.

"Col. Hoffman said he would have enlisted you as one of his hired guns if Jericho hadn't any use for you. Seems they have quite a few wanted citizens they need to track down, dead or alive." Jake was pretty sure who one of those citizens were. Jake's face darkened and Eric changed the subject.

"We're having the funerals tomorrow morning. Jimmy and I took care of the arrangements." Eric watched his brother turn to the window and nod his head.

Hospital beds tended to make people put on the kid gloves, when dealing with those laying in them.Jake was wondering when someone was going to mention Jericho's latest casualties, compliments of one Philip Constantino.

After things had began to settle in town, it was realized that after Constantino killed Manny Hayward at the farm, he snuck into town looking for Heather. Carl was killed by Constantino after he'd stumbled onto the ex-Mayor's hiding spot in the storm sirens out building, which happened to be Carl's hiding place after his own escape from the clinic. Bill came in afterwards, looking for Carl and must have found him and his own untimely end. It chilled Jake's insides cold, knowing that man had been moving around his town unchecked. He knew Constantino had been at the reception. _…__judging by that kiss last night in the square, I'd say you're gonna wish it was your life I took…' _Jake pushed away the memory of a dead mans threat.

"Some of New Bern will be attending, along with Mr. Perkins. Mom says we may be able to get you out of here by then." Eric cleared his throat and followed his brother's gaze outside. He waited a moment, expecting Jake to give some sort of answer or word, but received none. His brother was still healing and Eric figured, still pretty damned exhausted from his marathon week. Whatever the case, Jake remained quiet and was once again, unreadable to his brother.

"How about I let you try and get some more sleep. Mom will be pushing me out of here soon enough, anyway." Eric nodded his head to Jake when he finally turned back to him. Jake returned the gesture and watched his brother retreat from the room.

'_Sleep? Not likely now.'_ Jake turned his attentions back to his view of Mr. Grady's field, which sat just behind the west end of the clinic. His eyes slowly followed the long multiple rows of little green seedlings, that had found their way up and out of the dirt.

'_Last I heard, you're not a farmer, Jake.'_ He wasn't sure why the memory came to him, right then. Maybe it was the field of young corn or maybe it was being informed of just what his job should be. _'Col. Hoffman said he would have enlisted you as one of his hired guns if Jericho hadn't any use for you.'_ Jake shook his head and felt his stomach knot. _'That's right; I'm good at killing people'. _It's what he had told Stanley, before heading out to go kill Constantino._ 'Haven't been having much luck keeping them protected.'_

Jake was not given very long to think on his career choices when the wall outside his room took a smack to the drywall.

"I told you I wasn't going to catch it, Stanley. You're lucky that thing was empty." He heard Mimi yell.

As quietly as his brother left the room, Stanley entered just as loud with an agitated wife, sister and a bed pan in tow.

"Didn't get you a card, Jake. Thought you'd like the bed pan. Got lots of uses…" Jake watched Mimi and Bonnie glare at Stanley and somehow found it comforting. Mimi grabbed the bedpan off of him and tossed it onto the chair beside the door.

"Stanley thought Frisbee was one of those uses." Mimi tore her eyes from her big kid of a husband to smile at Jake, just as Bonnie punched her brother's arm for good measure.

Despite himself, Jake chuckled and shook his head. "Pull up some seats—a bed pan. Eric said Mom's bringing something in for supper…"

"Actually, Bonnie and I just wanted to stop by real quick to see how you're doing, before we go to your house for Heather…"

"I thought she was sleeping down the hall in the staff bunk room?" Jake quickly questioned.

"Ah, yeah." Mimi would have attempted to back peddle but saw no use. "She left to get some clothes, non—clinic issue, and a few things for you. It's getting dark so your mom asked us to pick her up."

Jake lay back on his reclined bed and sighed in frustration. "Tell her I'll see her when she gets here." Meaning he and Heather were going to have some words. "Thanks." He told the women as they waved goodbye.

Stanley smiled after his wife and sister and let out a large contented sigh. "God, I love being married." Stanley proclaimed just as Jessica came in to take Jake's vitals.

"Glad to hear it Stanley. I'm sure Mimi will be glad you approve." Jessica patted the tall farm boy and smiled at her patient. "Hey there, Jake. You know the drill."

Jake nodded his head and opened his mouth for the thermometer, in tired resignation

"So when's your big day, Jake?" It took a moment for Stanley's words to sink into Jake, but when they did, it was all he could do not to swallow the thermometer Jessica just placed in his mouth.

Jessica raised her eye to the two men and chuckled. "I do come in when the good stuff happens, don't I?" She checked her watch and grinned. "Keep that in your mouth, Romeo. You can give an answer for us when I'm done."

By then Stanley was holding his side from laughing while Jake wearily eyed his friend and menace at the foot of his bed.

"Stanley!" Jake choked out a warning as the thermometer was unceremoniously pulled from his mouth.

"98.9. Your mom says that's normal for you." Jessica smiled at Jake as she cleaned the thermometer and recorded the stats.

"Yeah, Jakes blood always ran a little hot." Stanley could not help himself. Jakes warning glare was more like a green light for Stanley, then a stop sign. He always knew he was getting somewhere with Jake when he was in his best friends crosshairs.

Jake continued to eye his friend, but shown no signs of answering while Jessica still stood amongst them. Jessica took the hint.

"I'll see you in about an hour, Jake." Jessica pulled her clipboard to her chest. "And don't go riling up my patient." She smacked Stanley with her pen on the way out.

Stanley grinned after her then back to his captive audience. He strolled over to Jake's bedside and plunked down in the chair beside it. Jake chose to go back to his view of Mr. Grady's field.

"Come on, Jake. You and Heather…" Stanley stared incredulously at his now sullen looking friend. "Jesus, all you needed this week was a sword and a white horse and Heather a tower to escape from. You don't even have the option now, to deny what the two of you feel for one another, not after all the hardcore public displays of affection these past few days…"

"I'm not denying anything, Stanley…" Jake turned back to his friend. "And this is not a fairy tail. I don't need anyone reminding me of what she means to me, or what happened because of m…" Jake stopped, like he'd given too much information, and turned back to the window.

A silence filled the room, while Stanley eyed his defensive friend. Was Jake getting cold feet? Why would a man, who had once been living life dangling by a bit of twine, now begin to back away from a life wrapped up with a big, beautiful bow; a life said man had earned? It only took a moment and a lifetime of knowing Jake, to put together an answer. _'Guilt.'_

Stanley was going to go for broke and ask his friend what he'd been itching too, since Jake had come back to Jericho.

"What happened to you, Jake?" As answer, Jakes eyes snapped around and met his. Stanley didn't recognize his friend for a moment, but he did recognize the shadows that Jake kept as constant companions, slide over his features.

"Is this—this guilty complex you keep sporting, because of your past, Jake? Is it Chris or—or your family, or all the dumb ass shit you've pulled when you were young?" Jake turned back to the window silently. "The town let that go—hell, you told me Emily let that go. And your family and friends…you don't have to atone with us." Stanley shook his head and gave a dark chuckle. Jake was paid up with all of them in spades. "Is it what happened when you joined the military? Cause guys end up doing…"

"Stanley, lay off…" Jake growled.

"No, Jake." Stanley stood from his friend's bedside and walked in front of his view, only to receive a dark stare.

"Are you gonna let whatever you saw, whatever you did in the past, screw-up your future just when its beginning?" Stanley tried to get Jake to look at him, but failed. He just hoped his words didn't. "You are my best friend Jake. You're my brother. I've stood by you, accepted you when you've done things dumber than dirt. And my 'spidey-senses' are telling me your thinking about being real dumb…"

"If being dumb means leaving AMA again, then that's just Jake, Stanley. Hey boss, how are you feeling?" Jimmy walked from his spot in the door all smiles, not hearing all of what was said between the two men. Quickly, Jimmy felt the coolness between them when neither immediately answered.

Stanley gave a weak smile to the deputy. "Doing things against others better advice is just natural for Jake. Can't let the boat ride calm waters for too long."

Jimmy continued to look between the two men, unsure of what he had walked in on, but decided to tread lightly. He moved closer to Jakes bedside and cleared his throat. "Snuck in past your Mom at the front desk to see how you're doing, before I go back to town hall." Jimmy gave a warm smile. "For the last couple of days being as they have, things are running pretty good in the office. Me and Sara are keeping the troops in line and your brother has been some help." Jimmy paused a moment, before he began; his hat now in his hands. "Did Eric tell you about the funerals being held tomorrow?"

"Yeah." Jake spoke quietly. "Did." Jake looked from the deputy, somehow knowing there was more to the visit. He was proven right when Jimmy reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out the inevitable.

"Also wanted to return this to you." The sheriff star sat in the palm of the deputy's hand. "Figured you'd want it for tomorrow when we burry Bill." Jimmy continued to hold out the star till realizing Jake wasn't taking it from him. Jimmy's dark brows knit over his baby blues in concern and then raised in understanding. "You're tired, Jake. I understand. But you'll be better tomorrow." Jimmy stepped forward and sat the piece of tin on Jakes bedside table, not asking if his friend wanted it or not, then placed his hat back on his head and smiled confidently. "See ya later Sheriff." Jimmy nodded to Stanley, now sitting by the window, and then was gone.

"Gotta go too." Stanley stood from his perch and wearily eyed his friend. "Think about what I said." He reached over and touched the star at the edge of the table, giving his friend a meaningful look. "Don't go and screw up your 'do over', Jake." And then he was out the door.

'_My do over?'_ Jake looked at the badge, wearily. _'My chance to hit the ball again, even after I struck out.'_ Jake shook his head and grudgingly yawned. _'Damn Stanley and his metaphors and spidey sense.'_ Jake grumbled to himself as his eyes fell from the star and sleep overtook him.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

When Jake woke again, it was late and the sky was dark. The room light was low and he could make out a bundle of cloths in the far chair and a bowl of food on his bed tray just out of reach. His stomach appropriately growled.

"Damn it!" Jake growled as he tried to reach for the food and was met by the pain in his shoulder.

"Did we come at a bad time?"

Startled, Jake looked up and found a woman and her young daughter framed in the dimly lit doorway. "Mrs. Sanchez. Stacey…" Jake pulled his blanket closer to his bare chest with a surprised grin. "No-no, your fine. I'm just-well, I'm still working the kinks out of me. It's slow going."

The mother and daughter smiled and stepped inside the room near his bed. "That's why we stopped by; that and my cousin Louis. He'd fallen and broke his ankle last night getting our horses back onto our property and we had to bring him in.

"I'm sorry. How is he doing?"

"Best as he can with a crutch and a limp, but well, thank you. He's outside in the truck. He was just released." Theresa Sanchez nodded to the outside and Jake nodded in understanding of her cousin's injury.

"Stacey had heard that the Sheriff was here too and wanted to see you, and thank you…"

"Thank me?" Jakes brows drew in question even though a part of him had an idea what that 'thank you' was for. He had been avoiding this encounter for nearly a year. _'Hadn't been hard with all of hell breaking loose every other day.'_

"Yes. She wanted to thank you—we both wanted to thank you for what you had done for her the night after the bombs."

Mrs. Sanchez's eyes glowed with an appreciation and kindness that pulled at Jakes chest. He looked down to the covers on his bed and then back. "I—I just did what I could for her…" Jake looked to Theresa and then to her daughter. "…for you." Jake's eyes caught the small scar he had created on the child's throat to save her; finding it long healed, and then to her eyes. Those deep brown eyes drew him in with their warmth and innocence, reminding him of somewhere, someone else's…

Stacey smiled brightly at Jake and his own deep eyes grew wide.

"Is that your Sheriffs star?" Jake turned to the neglected piece of tin on his bedside table and nodded. He didn't stop the little hands from lifting it from its spot and could only silently watch her as she held it with a child's wonder and reverence.

"We were all happy when you took the Sheriffs position." Theresa's voice broke through the short lull in conversation. "You'd already done so much for our town, after the bombs." Her eyes warmly smiled when Jakes met hers. "You're a hero to my little girl, Sheriff, to a lot of us."

Unlike everyone else who had given him the mantle "hero", Jake did not brush this woman's earnest words away or her eyes, but held them both. "Thanks." He spoke softly.

"I'm glad your not bad sick" The little girl spoke up. "So you can still be our Sheriff." The girls face beamed in the dim light as she handed Jake his star.

Jake took it gently from her small fingers and held the object if it had become new to him, changed. This time when he looked up into the little girls wide eyes, he only saw Stacey's. Jake breathed in deep. "Thank you."

"Come on, Stacey. We better let the Sheriff get his rest."

Quickly, the little girl hopped up on her tiptoes and planted a quick kiss on his cheek before meeting her mother at the door and waved. Jake quietly watched them leave then looked to the star in his hand. Something tickled the side of his cheek and he wiped it away.

'_I saved that little girl.'_ Jake brushed his thumb across the star in his hand. _'I killed another…' _ Jakes brows crinkled with emotion.

'_But you had to._' Jake heard his own voice inside his head. _'You had no choice. But you had a choice to save Stacey and you tried and did.'_

Jake gently placed his star back on the bedside table and looked out the window to the rising moon. _'There is always a choice'_, he scolded himself. _'I had the choice not to end her life.'_

'_But if you hadn't, others would have paid the price. Just like Constantino…'_

Jake closed his eyes tight, feeling some measure of disgust, comparing the two lives as if they were some how equal. Constantino was a selfish and sadistic bastard whose existence only promised more pain for those he came in contact with. But the little girl…

'_She was an innocent. Her whole life ahead…' _

'_A life in a war torn armpit of a country. There are no innocent in war, Green, only casualties and survivors.' _Jake physically tried to shake away the words his commander had spat at him in disgust, moments after they drug her body away, along with his…

Jake placed his head in his hands and tried to stop his memories, these moments he replayed in his head when he let his mind get too empty or allowed himself time to stand still, moments that relived themselves in his dreams. _'I can't do this anymore…'_

'_Then tell her—tell Heather. Maybe it won't make it go away, but at least you will have given her the truth. You owe her that. You don't deserve a future with her if you're not willing to give up your past. Choose to do the right thing…'_

He remembered his confession to her over the radio, those moments he thought she was slipping away from him. _'Every right choice...'_ Jake felt the words in his heart like it was that moment all over again, and felt the fear of loss overtaking him.

"Jake, are you okay?" Jakes eyes flew to the sound of Heathers voice and could not hide the fear and heaviness in his eyes.

"Jake?" Heather moved swiftly to his bedside when he did not answer, but continued to stare into her as if she were to disappear. "Jake?"

The heart in his chest slammed while his eyes passed over her concerned and loving features. _'There is no future for us… till she knows my past.'_

"I need to tell you about the things I've done."

Heather froze before the man she loved and felt her heart catch at the desperation that bled from his words. After a moment of silence, she spoke. "Jake, I know about Jonah—and Chris. Emily told me about the botched robbery…"

"And how I ran afterwards? The mess I left behind for my family and friends to clean-up?" Jake finished for her.

Wide eyed, Heather nodded her head quietly. At the time she thought Emily had told her those things about Jake as a friendly warning. Now she understood the reasons weren't so pure. Either way, knowing Jake's troubled past had not deterred her interest in him then or her love for him now. "I know you are no longer that man, Jake. Whatever else you may have done, it's the past…"

"It's a part of me." Jake eyed her steadily. "The part I don't think I can ever change, ever wipe clean." Jake paused, looking down to his hands, wishing he didn't have to tell her these things, but knew it must be done. "You might not want to be a part of…"

Jakes heart stopped when he felt her move from his side, interrupting his words and the relief he felt when she didn't step out the door, but closed and locked it behind her, before returning to his side.

"Then tell me, Jake." Heather pulled up the seat beside his bed and quickly sat down, determination set her features. "I showed you mine, so show me yours. Let's see if **this** sends me running and screaming." Maybe it sounded flip to say, but it was true. She loved him, all of him, and the sooner he could get past whatever it was that haunted his heart and realized that fact, the better.

Jake took in a shaky breath when her hands came down upon his arm; caught the strength and reassurance in her eyes. She had exposed her worst secrets to him only a few days prior and here they still were. The squeeze of her hand steadied his resolve and he began to look for the words to begin.

"I told you before, I left Jericho never intending on coming back." Jake paused. "One of my best friends was dead and I had a part in it. No matter what part of it, I knew Emily was going to blame me after Jonah and Mitch were done with her. And I knew my family…" he paused once more. "At the time I thought that this was it, the one last screw up I'd make before they were done with me. I couldn't face them. Hell—it took the need for money to make me stop at Granddads to get the cash to run as far as I did."

When Jake nosed the Roadrunner onto his Grandfathers property, EJ was already standing on the porch waiting for him…

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

"_Granddad!" Jake ran up to the porch and stopped just before the step that held his uncharacteristically silent grandfather._

_EJ Green raised out one of his gnarled hands, grabbing Jakes with the other and dropped a rolled up gob of hundreds and fifties into it. It was the elder Greens gambling money._

"_Deputy Taylor was looking for your company earlier, boy. So I suspect you better get going."_

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

"And then he gave me this sad smile, like he knew this moment was coming, that he somehow saw the future, but knew it wasn't his place to stop it." Jake looked out the window of his room. "It was the last time I'd ever see my grandfather alive." It was just one more of Jakes regrets.

EJ Green knew he had cancer, then. He hadn't told his family yet. Didn't see the need when the doctor said 'inoperable', so he kept it quiet for the next year. It wasn't till the week he died, that everyone found out at the hospital. He said he'd had a better time living his last year, not having all of them going 'sad sack' around him. EJ died a week later. Jake was in South America then.

"Granddads money was enough for me to get to Denver, put the car in storage and buy a ticket to New York. By then I found out I didn't even make it into the local papers in Jericho, that Mayor Green had pulled his strings, so I decided to do something I didn't even expect. I enlisted in the army…"

Jake had washed out towards the end of training. No matter how hard the military tried to break him down to build him back up into a soldier, they could never remove the first brick.

"After washing out, I picked up a job in South America, flying cargo out of Brazil to Texas, and everywhere in between. I knew about the job through an acquaintance of Jonah's from a couple years prior. The pay was good because the risk was high and I didn't give a damn about the danger or the cargo we were hauling."

Jake was with them over a year till this one customer came up to him after a particularly hairy flight into Panama. Asked what experience Jake had and how much he loved his country. Jake thought he was a military recruiter, so he began to shut the older man down quick.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

"_Hold on, kid. Uncle Sam isn't my boss, he's my client. I think you're just what my company is looking for in an employee, if you're up for a challenge."_

_Jake eyed the middle age man before him, now seeing a businessman and not a soldier. "So what would the job entail?"_

_The older man smiled. "Some training. You had mentioned a degree at Riddle, that's good. How good are you with a sidearm…?"_

_Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo_

"He said everything I was needing to hear. The job was dangerous, I'd get paid well enough and I'd get a ticket that would take me even further away from the life I failed at." Jake felt Heathers fingers squeeze his arm and looked down at them, clearing his throat.

"Going overseas, it was like nothing I had ever known. If the situation had been better, it would have been one of the most amazing experiences I had ever had. Everything seemed so different. The places I went, the cultures I was submerged in…" Jake looked up to Heather enough to give her a sad smile. "For a second, I was stupid enough to think that the people I met—worked with, were different too. Turns out, place and culture don't change human nature, just varies it. There's a word for bad and for criminal in every language."

Jake had ran small cargo planes at the beginning of his work with the company, and then drove truck when their teams stayed longer at their destination. He never asked what cargo he helped to hall and got shot at for—he'd learned that from his time with Jonah. But he figured it was drugs and arms. And whatever the dirty job they were employed for, Jake did and did well. First time, except for flying, he'd done anything well.

"Nearly two years in and I'd been throughout Iraq and spent much of my time in Afghanistan going back and forth through the middle east. By then they were using me for more ground work, gave me a section of guys in the larger crew. I was a vet to them, considering the large turn over of employees. Guys left real quick, got seriously injured real quick or got killed quick enough. The military was taking the worst of the pounding and the guys our company was hiring in were becoming less than satisfactory, but it was supply and demand." He'd met men from Ravenwood who had fit that classification well. It hadn't surprised him, when he found out Ravenwood had been the ones to do the killing in Rogue River or their actions since.

"But I can't talk; I was there for the money and adrenaline like the other half. It showed with my 'leadership' skills. I wasn't leading, just kept pulling our collective asses out of the fire."

Jakes last months in the company, they had picked up a large military contract in Baghdad, taking diplomats in and out of the city. It was a change from the import-export business.

"I had made a lot of local contacts in the city. Ahmad was one of our most trusted information peddlers. He was Sunni Tajik, wanted change, wanted peace, or whatever was passing for it in his country. He believed the US could help…" Jakes eyes moved to the window once more, keeping them on the moon. "He thought America could help 'fix' his home…" Jakes voice, now just a whisper, fell into silence.

"I liked him." Jake finally spoke again. Ahmad was a good man, good family man. He kind of reminded me of Granddad. Had this twinkle in his eyes, like he knew something or had something the rest of the world didn't. Whatever that thing was, made everything else bearable to him. I think that thing had been his family…" Jake trailed into silence, thinking of the old widower and his family of six children; five sons and a girl…

Jake fell silent again, he may well have been on the moon the way he stared at it now. Heather could feel him distancing himself from her by his far off stare and even further away voice, which gave away no hint of emotion. He was not in the room with her but far, far away. Heather braced herself and waited for Jake to continue.

"We were waiting for our transport back to the air strip with a group of local and US officials. Our transport was late, had to change route when fighting intensified on the southern end of the city…" The thing about waiting, it left time open for a situation to go wrong.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

"_Fuck!" Jake spat irritably, before taking one last drag off his one last cigarette, then snuffing it out in the sand under his boot. 'Let's get this show on the road.'_

_Rapid gunfire echoed out over the eastern corner of the city, making the newbie beside him jump. Jake just shook his head and then eyed the surrounding buildings with the scope on the barrel on his riffle; only getting a view of vacant eyed windows and an unsettled feeling that they were not alone. _

_He'd told Ahmad about the buildings having eyes, earlier in the week, when the elder man had once again invited the American to his home on the outer edge of the city. The old man just gave him a wise smirk and nodded his head. They had just finished lunch with Ahmad's extended family and were now watching a couple of the younger children play ball in the back courtyard of the house. 'Shadows have eyes here, Jake Green.' He finally spoke. 'Make sure __**you**__ do not blink.'_

"_You'll get use to the sound." He told the younger man with out looking away from the buildings on the other side of the square. 'Nothing out there but shadows, ghosts and rats?'_

"_Get use to it!" Freddie raised a questioning brow to his unaffected superior. "When's that gonna happen? Been here three months, man."_

_Jake just gave a grim smirk without taking his eyes off the streets in front of him, the sound of gunfire continuing to pepper the air several blocks away from their position. Jake had gotten use to the gunfire. May as well, it was as common place to him as birdsong back home. It was the sound of explosions that still made him hold his gun a bit tighter, made his head dip down and his feet move. The last mortar attack on his company had taken out seven of their men and twelve Afghan citizens. He still had nightmares about it._

"_Green. Get the men ready to roll. Transport in five." Jake nodded to the communications officer and shouldered his weapon. He could visibly see his companion beside him breathe out in relief._

"_We're getting out of Dodge, Freddie." Jake gave the man a half smile. "Not a moment too soon." Jakes eyes drifted back across the street as he stepped towards the square. Something in the shadows caught his eye once more. It was a small and moving quickly._

"_Shoma__?" Jake yelled in broken Farsi at the approaching form. _

"_Amal!" He heard Ahmad yell the name at the small figure and Jake realized it was the old mans daughter. "Amal stop!" _

_The roar of truck engines could now be heard coming through the neighborhood and the girl continued her walk to meet them out in the square. Amal was not there to see her father, but the men her oldest brother and uncle believed were taking honor away from their family by Ahmad working with them. She was told, by doing this—she would be saving her family and her beloved father from great ruin. She was a good, obedient girl._

_Jake yelled the girls name, now recognizing her, as the first truck cleared the street corner into the square. She had turned to her father and then to Jake; he would remember those frightened brown eyes for the rest of his days. _

_Jake followed her wide eyed gaze to the center of her small body and felt his insides burst with a numbing cold, as he traced the outline of a bombers belt just under the young girl's robes. Jake watched her hand trail down to her side, as if in slow motion, and he felt his gun rise. With no hesitation, Jake made a choice… _

_ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo_

"Everyone hit the deck." Jake's voice was weak, a lifeless whisper that teared Heathers eyes as she kept her stunned silence. "None of it—what I had done, hit me till I saw Ahmad run into the square…"

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

_Quickly, the scene and the company's clients were secured, as Jake felt his feet move further into the square._

"_She would not have done it!" Ahmad's voice rose in anguish as he cradled his daughter's lifeless body and rocked her in his arms. "I could have talked to her, my Amal." The old man's words trailed out into a howl of misery as he tore the belt off his daughters limp form and threw it into the gutter, not caring if it exploded on impact. _

_Jake took another step closer, but stopped when he could see the girl's lifeless face as her father lay her small body down to the bloody sand. _

"_You killed my girl!" The old man yelled as he stood from her._

"_I had no choice…!" Jake screamed his only defense, dropping his weapon onto the street. _

_In that moment the old man charged down upon Jake, brandishing a knife, consumed in a fathers rage. _

"_Nooooo!" Jake screamed as another gun shot rang out through the square. _

_Ahmad stopped within a few feet of Jake, his eyes wide with surprise. His knife fell from his hand and before he could take another step, he fell dead in the street. _

"_He was gonna kill ya, Jake!" _

_But Jake didn't hear Freddie's scared and shaking voice, only his own stunned one. "No choice…" Jake fell to his knees in the sand. Time would pass after that day and he'd wish that Freddie had been a worse shot._

_ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo_

A fragile silence fell over the hospital room. Heather took in a shaky breath that very well felt like her first in a long time. The things Jake had told her, frightened her mind to think on and assaulted her heart to feel. She watched his silhouette in the dim light of the room. He had yet to turn to her, but she could see the moons light pick up the unspent tears glistening in his eyes. And the arm that still lay under her grasp, now trembled. Before she could even begin to find words she knew weren't enough, his voice broke the silence once more.

"My superior called me a hero…" Jakes voice wavered, but did not break. _'Hero.'_ The word caught in his throat every time the title had been handed to him and the cruel irony was never lost on him these many months. But remembering Mrs. Sanchez and Stacey earlier in the evening, stopped him from gagging on the word now.

"I shot a child" Jakes voice rose, filled with self-loathing. "I killed her father—my friend… I may well have pulled the trigger." Jake lowered his head to his chest and squeezed his eyes shut. "I didn't hesitate to pull the trigger. What kind of hero—what kind of man does not hesitate to kill a child to save himself…?"

A deep sob escaped him, but he swallowed it down. Heather felt it crush her heart. That weight he'd carried with him since the day they met, that far off look in his eyes when he believed no one was watching him; he was trusting her and loving her enough to let her see those damaged pieces of him. But it was certain to her now, after hearing the self loathing and guilt in his voice, that Jake had not spared any of that love for himself.

Heather tentatively reached out her hand and placed it to the side of Jakes chin, guiding him to face her. She sucked in her own tears when his closed eyes opened to reveal all the pain and guilt that one man should not bear alone. The tears flowed freely now, from his soulful dark eyes and covered the plains of his cheeks. When Jake tried to pull from her view, the compassion in her eyes more than he could take; she took his face in both hands and brought herself closer to his side.

"I love you, Jake. We can get through this, too." It's all she had right then, but it seemed to pull a switch in Jake. Another sob broke from his chest and his arms went out around her and held onto her body for dear life. Heather quickly returned the embrace, only holding him tighter as he began to cry.

She held him long after his tears were gone and hers began. And as they both grew too tired to support the other, Heather silently crawled into the bed and continued to hold him, while sleep quickly found them both.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

When Jake opened his eyes again, he could feel it was still late. The light in the room had been turned off and the glow of the moon in the night sky was the only illumination. The last thing he remembered was falling apart in Heathers arms. Now looking down to the warm weight against his side, he watched her sleeping in his. It felt like the simplest of miracles. _'She's still here.'_

Tracing the edge of her brows and down the line of her cheek with his eyes in the dim light, he tried to push away the anxiety that still ran rampant in his chest. She was still here and he believed her when she said she loved him, but the sun had yet to rise and Jake knew better than most, that everything looked different in the light of day…

Heather breathed in and felt her cheek brush against a foreign, but not at all unpleasant surface. A small part of her believed she would have been more self-conscious, even awkward, waking with her face nuzzled close against the bear chest she'd spent so many nights remembering in freshly showered flashback. But she did not. She was only sorry for the situation it had finally occurred.

"Hey."

"Hey." She returned and turned her face up to meet his. Jake tried on a smile for her that didn't quite fit and they both fell into a nervous silence.

'_Was she changing her mind?'_ Jake felt his chest tighten in the misleading silence. _'Was she going to back away and…?'_

"The night of your dad's wake, you said that saving Stacey on the school bus was the first thing you ever did right." Heather had bumped into Stacey and her mother tonight—or was it last night—in the clinics front parking lot. It was the night after the bombs she had been thinking of, just before she had entered Jake room moments later. She was thinking of how selfless Jake had been that night, how unconcerned he was for his own well being and how he had ended up a patient at the clinic then. Those thoughts had been seriously diverted by Jakes confession, but now, just pulling from sleep it was those thoughts that sprung back into her mind. They had changed some, knowing what she knew now, but it had also made many things more clear in regards to the complicated man at her side. "When you saved Stacey that night, it's when it all changed for you?"

Jake felt his mouth drop and found it hard to find words that his mouth and mind could agree on. He felt like she once again crawled inside of him and pulled out what he thought he hid from everyone else. But she wasn't everyone else. She was Heather.

For a moment she wasn't sure if he was going to answer, but then he cleared his throat…

"I swore I saw Amal and not Stacey, when she stopped breathing. Could even hear her father screaming in my head…" Jake raised his hand to his nose quickly and brought it away. "I—I just remember a voice telling me _'not again—this can't happen again'_ over and over till I started to help her…"

"You saved her, Jake…"

"No. Don't you see? She saved me!" Jake cleared his throat, his eyes shining with emotion. "When she opened her eyes and took in that first breath, I felt—I felt…" his mind rushed to find the words, but only found one. "…alive."

Heather propped herself on her elbow and placed her hand over Jakes heart. He jumped at the contact on his bare skin and looked down to her small hand. Quickly, he placed his hand over hers, holding it tight to his chest.

"It was like I was given a second chance to live, second chance to do right, to make a difference, make amends. I wanted Amal and her father's deaths mean something." Jake gripped the hand on his heart. "I never believed my life did, so I…"

"Began to put everyone else's safety ahead of yours?" Heather quickly interrupted. "Kept rushing off to save the day, with no regard to your own life?"

Jake nodded his head. "People just started depending on me, my family started believing in me and I realized I never wanted to let them down again. Whatever the cost, it didn't matter…" Jake paused. "I was fine with that cost being my life." Jakes eyes now leveled with Heathers and she felt a chill go down her spine.

"It wasn't till after I fell in love with you" Jake searched Heathers wide eyes and held her hand tighter. "It wasn't till after I had realized what you meant to me, did I find a reason to at least look before I leapt into the next big emergency." A wistful look embraced his features. "I wanted better odds that I could make it back to you in one piece."

Slowly, Heather moved against Jake's body and brought her lips up to meet his own, their hands still joined on his chest. The kiss was gentle, warm. It spoke of tenderness, acceptance and most importantly love. When they parted, Jake's eyes didn't immediately open.

"Why are you still here?" Jake opened his eyes and found Heathers, a small smile in their blue depths.

"Why did you tell me your past?" She gave as answer, her voice matter-of-fact.

It wasn't the first time they had answered questions this way. The first time was on Jake's back porch, after his fathers wake. They had sat under the stars that night, giving bits of truth about themselves, answering difficult questions the other had posed. Tonight, the answers to their questions would be simple, as they were the same. The answer was love.

TBC


	22. Chapter 22

**Disclaimer:** Yep, don't own Jericho or its character's, but the story line is mine along with the words I give them.

**Authors Note:** This is AU, and I've taken some creative license as always. And this chapter wasn't beta read. I just wanted to get it out there. So please, if something hits ya wrong please critique. I have thick skin and may wish to beta later.

This chapter starts the next day after the last chapter and takes bits from Chap.7 Ghosts, amongst others. Also, the poem in this chapter is called '_Final Inspection'_ by an unknown author. I thought it fit the moment.

And a reminder that this **is **my therapy, but not from the show ending prematurely. This will become my H/J therapy for an upcoming season that seems to have chosen another pairing. On that note, I hope to finish this story before the new season of Jericho. I started my version of these characters on-goings, when I thought the show had died. I just wanted to tie up a few things in the H/J shipper world, back then and didn't expect my story to go as long as it did. Couldn't help myself after a while. Now that the show has been resurrected, I feel a need to end my story. As much as any story about peoples lives can end. (Probably with some loose ends still wagging.)I have also been leaning towards my own fictional world and characters, one I began to create when I was a teen. I think it deserves my time. As for fan fiction, I will continue to participate in the form of one shot. Fan Fic is awesome.

So I hope you enjoy this chapter. **It's not the last**, but soon. Thank you for reading.

**Warning**: Language and a bit of adult situation for you shipper fans. And more lovely melodrama run-a-muck, along with grammar and spelling gone wild.

**Chapter 20: An Understanding**

by Ann Pendragon

The morning found Jake alone in his hospital bed. He yawned quietly and then smiled; stretching his fingers over the spot she had lain. Jake took in a full deep breath and let it out slow. Today was a new day.

"She's getting dressed." In the doorway, Gail Green grinned, as her son quickly pulled his hands from the sheets and color slightly, being caught in a moment. But Gail had seen a lot more than this, earlier. Late last night, she had gone to check on Jake and found the door locked. As one of the clinics keeper of the keys, she'd opened the door to find her son and Heather fast asleep in one another's embrace. It had done her heart good to witness the tender moment and she found herself sending up a silent prayer to Johnston, wishing he had been there to see it. She had gone back to the staff bunk room soon afterwards and happily slept like a rock for the rest of the night.

Jake nodded his head and gave his mother a warm smile, as she walked over and sat at the edge of his bed. "So I'm getting out of here today?"

Gail smirked and eyed her first born. "As long as you promise to use a cane, take at least the minimum of your pain killers and all of your antibiotics, and you do nothing that looks remotely like work for at least a week…"

"Is that all?" Jake interrupted sarcastically.

"Are you wanting out?" Gail challenged.

"Hell yes, but a week?" Jake complained. His mother's stare wasn't wavering, so there was no point in arguing_. 'But a week?'_ He just had to agree for now. Later would be a different story. "Okay, you got me."

Gail grinned victoriously and reached for her son's hand. The two fell into a comfortable silence.

"After the funeral this afternoon, the wake will be held at Baileys around three. I had Jimmy bring by your dress uniform" Jake could see it on the door. "I know you haven't been much for wearing a uniform on the job, but I figured today was an exception."

Jake rubbed his mother's fingers lightly and grinned. "That will be fine mom. Thanks." They sat quietly once more.

"So how did our house fair with the storms?" He hadn't really thought to ask, hadn't had the time or inclination till now. And the way most of his family seemed to be sleeping at the hospital, he was a little concerned.

"Well, not bad actually, aside from a few shingles off and no power."

"The windmill? Thought you girls shored it up a few days ago?" Jake half kidded. Had it been that long since he woke with a hangover from Stanley's Bachelor party, to the sound of Heather and his mother laughing and joking while they attached more cables to the windmills base?

"It had nothing to do with that smarty." Gail shook at her son's hand. "Some large debris flew into it and did it some damage. Heather tried fixing it yesterday, when she went back to the house, but didn't have the part on hand. I think she asked Titus to get Fred to look for the part at the garage this morning."

"If I could find her off switch…" Jake threatened, but smiled just the same.

"You'd leave it on and you know it. You wouldn't want her any other way." Gail grinned and watched another warm smile emerge over her son's features, illuminating bright, clear eyes. Something was different about Jake this morning. She hadn't seen him this easy to smile in such a long time. She was fairly certain a young brunette had something to do with that, but their was something else…

"I told her mom." Jake's voice sober. "And about my past, the lowlights of it anyway."

Gail heard her son's earnest words and felt a mothers tears of relief. She brought his hand to her lips and kissed it. "Oh honey, it's about time."

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Jake stood in front of the locker-room mirror and wasn't entirely pleased or displeased with the sight he saw. The star was strait. His gun comfortably situated. The uniform fit well enough against his body, the dark brown complimentary to his dark features. He was more or less ready for this day. As much as one is ready to send off the dead.

'_But it's a uniform?'_ The not so latent rebel within protested. Jake tugged at the stiff collar and then pushed the long strands of his freshly washed hair back out of his eyesTo his mother's dismay, just moments earlier, he'd avoided another haircut…

"_Jacob Johnston Green, you are the Sheriff of this town and…" Gail had pleaded with her son for the second time that morning. _

"_And as the Sheriff" Jake looked up from his shaving. "I've decided that short hair isn't in the regs, Mom." He smirked when she threw her hands up in the air and left the locker-room, muttering something about the civilized world taking one more knock to the head. _

Presently, both she and Heather were finding his shoes somewhere at the nurses station, and there were no scissors in sight. Jake's reflection gave a crooked smirk._ 'Still got the hair.'_ The rebel was appeased.

Jake startled when he heard a high whistle from the other side of the room.

"You look handsome, handsome." Heather smiled from the door, his shoes dangling in her hands. Jake arched a brow, and hobbled over to her with the assistance of the white walking cane his mother had forced upon him.

"Say that to me after the sling for my arm and this geriatric cane." Jake stood against her and bent down for a soft kiss, they both smiled into.

"I think you look amazing, grandpa." Heather toed the cane and rubbed his chest. "Do you hurt much?"

"Mom got me hopped up on something for the afternoon." Jake could have done without, but he was glad he didn't.

"Hey big brother got you something." Jake looked up just in time to catch the walking stick that was being hurled at him.

Jake looked at Eric smiling in the doorway and then to the cane; twirling the mahogany stick in his hands. "Granddads cane?"

Eric grinned. "Old man Donavan won it from Granddad in a poker game a few years ago. Widow Donovan thought we'd like it back, considering."

Jake smiled at his brother and placed the cane tip to the floor with a resounding smack to the tile.

"Oh lord, you found your grandfathers cane?" Gail moaned as she entered the room with Mary. "I thought that dirty old thing was mercifully gone for good.

Heather gave a questioning look at the Green's then looked closer at the cane. "Is that a naked…?"

Jake nodded, his teeth fully bore.

Gail gave an exasperated huff. "That was EJ Green."

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

It was decided that the triple funeral would be held at the town cemetery early afternoon, followed by the wake at Bailey's. Gray had tried pushing for the occasion to be held at town hall; there was going to be a government official present after all. But that idea lasted about as long as it took Eric, Jimmy and Stanley to pass around to everyone that it was Baileys instead. What better place to honor a policeman, the town schizophrenic, and the community's cannabis grower all at once.

A spring rain was falling now, over the processional of last minute citizens into the cemetery yard. Many had taken cover under the tents, while others milled about the large stretch of spongy ground under umbrellas and poncho's, meeting and greeting one another till attention would be called.

"Jake. Heather." Russell made his way up to the couple, with two of his townsmen close behind. Heather immediately offered him a warm hug that he happily returned, and Jake offered his hand.

"I'm glad you and your men came today." The Sheriff nodded to the men and then met Russell's eyes. The two hadn't spoken since Jake left the Hayward farm to go after Constantino.

"Look Jake, I'm sorry…" Russell began, but Jake cut him off by placing a hand on his shoulder.

"No sorry needed. It wasn't your fault, anymore than it was mine." Jake caught Heather watching him out of the corner of his eye, her face beaming with his acknowledgement to them and to himself. It was a long time coming. He grabbed her hand, giving it a squeeze.

Russell nodded his head and smiled at the obviously happy couple. "I'm glad both of you came out of this mess breathing—and together." He grinned at Heather. "Is Jericho's guardian treating you alright?

Heather pulled closer into Jake, still holding his hand and smiled up at Russell brightly. Russell gave a brief laugh and shook his head.

"I take that as a yes."

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

"As I was telling Mr. Green, Mayor, the new government is extremely optimistic of Jericho's future. It's a fine little town and with a bit of government assistance, I see Jericho growing into a thriving agricultural, economical and social center of…"

"And what would that entail, Mr. Perkins" A deep official voice interrupted the government liaison.

"Oh, I a—Sheriff Green, Mrs. Green, Ms Lisinski. I'm so glad to see all of you safe and sound." The little man worked on regaining his composure. Jake noted that the mans right eye fidgeted when he was nervous. Jake had left an impression on the slippery little government official, the last time they met.

"Ms. Lisinski, I was very happy to hear that you came out of that horrific ordeal unscathed." He bowed to Heather. "And Sheriff, up and about already?" Mr. Perkins nodded to Jake, but got no response, so he looked to Mrs. Green and the Mayor. "Our young Sheriff here, endures injury during a F2 Tornado, leads his town through the hardship, rescues Ms. Lisinski and gets shot while taking down a murderous mad man all within the span of twenty-four hours." He proclaimed loudly then looked to Gail. "Very much the Energizer Bunny, your son, Mrs. Green." The bureaucrat smiled cleverly, as he slid his glassed back up the bridge of his small nose.

"Energizer Bunny." Gray answered for Gail with a too polite laugh. Mrs. Green was trying not to roll her eyes, standing beside Eric. "That's our Sheriff, Mr. Perkins."

Jake remained disinterested during the posturing government officials line of self serving praise. But when he felt Heathers grip on his hand tighten during Mr. Perkins over simplified sum up of some of the worst hours of both their lives, Jakes eyes narrowed. He did not like this man.

"What will Jericho have to give in order to get, Mr. Perkins?" Jake continued his original line of questioning, as if Mr. Perkins had not spoken at all. Only now the words carried a heavier tone.

"Now Jake." The Mayor warned. Jake paid no heed to Gray, just waited for an answer.

"No, no. It's fine Mayor. Your sharp and painfully direct Sheriff here asks a fair question, one that we will discuss fully at a more suitable time." The bureaucrat looked to the growing numbers of funeral goers around their little group. "The sooner we are all on board with what our country asks of us, the better."

Something crawled into Jake's gut and turned sour at the knowing glint in the government official's eye. Maybe Carl Mackey 'the town crazy' hadn't been so crazy after all when he spoke out at town meeting less than a month before…

'_Their gonna come and take our minds Jake! They already boom, boom, boomed us to scurry us like rats. Next it's our brains. Keep them government ghosts out the brain, keep em away'_

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

The Greens, Heather and Mary, made it under the main tent, where Gail spotted Stanley waving them over to a saved spot in the second row. As the woman exchanged greetings, Stanley casually leaned over into Jakes ear.

"Not bad for a gimpy legged, ex-town bad ass, huh Sheriff?" Stanley reached out and brushed off one of Jakes lapels with a flick and a wink. He was happy seeing his friend wearing the badge and the girl on his arm, when he walked under the tent.

Jake could not help the twitch upward of his lips at his friend's statement. Jake knew he was meaning more than the uniform and he could not agree more. Jake stole a glance at Heather as she spoke to Mimi and Bonnie and then back to his best friend with a nod. Jake leaned into Stanley's ear. "Maybe. But last I heard I was still a bad ass."

"Okay, everyone. Can we **please** be seated?" The Mayor pleaded with his town and received only partial compliance.

Jake raised his grandfather's audacious cane to the crowd along with his voice. "Service is about to begin folks, so can everyone find a spot." Most of the crowd looked to their Sheriff and tried to comply in the limited space around them.

Eric followed his brother's lead. "Everyone in the back move forward, let some of the folks with out umbrellas into the tent, we still have space."

Soon the crowd had begun to settle, along with the weather. Now only a light drizzle fell across the cemetery field. Pastor Reed from the First Baptist began with a simple prayer over the dearly departed and then a prayer to the living. After a moment of silence, with only the sniffs of mourners and the soft pelt of the rain on the tents canvas filling the air, the Pastor asked for those who had known the deceased best, to stand and give eulogy.

Mike Jenkins and his wife JoAnne remembered how Carl use to be the best skeet shooter in four counties when the three were teens and a heck of a buddy 'till his screws got a little loose'. As solemn a moment it was, the comment elicited a couple light chuckles in the crowd, one being Jake's.

And Sean stood up for Manny, reading the lyrics to 'Lithium', on behalf of the mans unwavering love of everything Nirvana. Jake could hear a low groan from Stanley, a few seats down.

After a odd moment of silence after Sean's half sung reading, Jimmy slowly moved to the podium to honor his friend and fellow officer Bill. Jake squeezed Heathers hand and stood up to join the other members of his department amassed at the front of the tent. He clasped Jimmy's shoulder on approach and shook his hand firmly, before standing beside him at the podium. He hated the familiarity of where he stood. Before his town, once more, in front of another flag draped casket. Only this time it was joined be two.

"Bill and I met in junior high right after my father, also an officer of the law, fell in the line of duty. My family and I had just moved to Jericho to start a new life." Jimmy began. "We hit it off immediately, becoming good friends. We stayed friends after graduation when the two of us went to the police academy together. We even lucked out and found positions in our home town together." Jimmy smiled. "Bill loved this town. It was the only place he could ever imagine himself being. Knowing that he died while in service to it—well, I know it's the only way he would have wanted his end to come." Jimmy cleared his throat and wiped his eye. "He was my best friend, and I'm gonna miss him a lot."

Jimmy pulled a folded piece of paper from his uniform. Bill had kept the scrap taped up beside his small poster of Jessica Simpson, in his now emptied locker back at the station. "This is a poem I know Bill would have wanted me to read today."

Just as Jimmy began to read from the rumpled scrap, Jericho's Sheriff Department fell around Deputy Erikson coffin and began to lift the flag. Jake had pulled off his sling to join them. And Jim Tomko, once again played taps for his town, before the gun salute... 

_The policeman stood and faced his god, which must always come to pass._

_He hoped his shoes were shining just as brightly as his brass._

_"Step forward now, policeman. How shall I deal with you?_

_Have you always turned the other cheek?_

_To my church have you been true?_

_The policeman squared his shoulders and said, No Lord. I guess I ain't._

_Because those who carry badges can't always be a saint._

_I've had to work most Sundays, and at times my talk was rough..._

_and sometimes I've been violent because the streets are awful tough._

_But I never took a penny that wasn't mine to keep..._

_though I worked a lot of overtime when bills got just too steep._

_And I never passed a cry for help, though at times I shook with fear._

_And sometimes, God forgive me, I've wept unmanly tears._

_I know I don't deserve a place among the people here._

_They never wanted me around except to calm their fear._

_If you've a place for me here, Lord it needn't be so grand._

_I never expected or had to much but if you don't ...I'll understand._

_There was silence all around the throne where the saints had often trod,_

_as the policeman waited quietly for the judgment of his God._

_Step forward now, policeman. You've borne your burdens well._

_Come walk a beat on heaven's streets._

_You've done your time in hell."_

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

The crowd at Bailey's ebbed and flowed with patrons, alcohol and the memories of the dead, both brought with them.

Heather had spent the last twenty minutes behind the bar with Mary and Mimi, trying to keep up with the drink orders. It seemed to be the one post-apocalyptic job she was finding hard to keep up with, and could only shake her head in admiration at the other two women as they dodged quickly behind one another with precisely balanced arm loads of drinks and warm grins. Heather had just spilled her last order across the bar and had dropped an open container of Bailey finest on Eric's feet moments earlier, when he came to check on Mary. She was pretty sure she was going to get relived of her duties very soon.

"Hey Professor, take a look at that." Heather felt Mimi's hand on her shoulder, turning her towards the back of the bar. One of the men who had come with Russell to the funeral was presently engaging a curly haired blond in what appeared to be a very animated conversation.

"Do you know him?" Mimi asked covertly, with a grin.

"Yeah, Matt Thomas. Moved to New Bern to take the high schools math teacher position just before I moved away. I think he was the assistant football coach for a while." A small grin crossed Heathers lips, watching the couple. "Russell likes him. Says he's been a lot of help getting New Bern back to norm—well, back to good."

"Well, it looks like Emily likes him too." Mimi elbowed Heather, before putting another drink onto the bar.

Heather smiled at Mimi and then back to her estranged friend and her would-be suitor. Whatever was to be of her relationship with Emily, Heather was glad to see the other woman happy—and moving on.

After a moment, Heather felt a tickle up the side of her neck and turned her attention to the other side of the noisy bar. Jake had been watching her watch Emily from his vantage point on the upper level, beside one of the booths. His uniform jacket was undone now and he held a half empty glass to the center of his chest, rolling it lightly with the palm of his hand. The smile he was giving Heather right then, no romance novel cliché could come close to touching. Heather felt her body momentarily shake.

Jake held her eyes a moment longer before smoothly glancing over the crowd to where Emily and Mr. Thomas sat, and then back to Heather. He smiled deeply at her; she could see a bit of humor dancing in his eyes. Heather had nothing to worry about, Jake was happy for Emily too, but it was too late not to feel a little ridicules for even entertaining the thought. Heather tried to fight a small laugh at herself, as did Jake from across the room. The message was received. This was a conversation they didn't need to have.

"I think we got things under control back here. Why don't you go check on that lawman of yours?" Mimi nudged her. "Looks like he's calling for you."

Heather figured her blush must have been spectacular. It had Mimi and Mary all smiles.

"If that's what only a look does for you…"

"Mimi!" Heather warned and walked out from behind the bar and up to Jake.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Earlier in the evening, Jake had tried to find Mr. Perkins, to continue the discussion he had started at the cemetery. But it seemed that the government liaison was called away to deal with other matters. Presently, Jake was sitting in the back booth of the bar, with Heather at his side along with his mother, Eric, Jimmy and Stanley planted in a chair in front of the table. They were taking in the concerns New Bern and Russell had regarding their shared public liaison.

"I don't like him Jake." Russell concluded at the edge of the booth. "Don't like how he's leaving us in the dark, regarding our new government's future involvement with our towns. Its not that New Bern would push away any assistance we can get, but I just can't help thinking there is going to be a heavy price for it, one that none of us are going to be able to stand paying. The man is hiding something, Jake. I feel it."

Jake nodded his head. He and Russell were once again on the same page. Both men smelled change in the air, because both men had the uncanny knack of putting their noses into the many affairs of their respective towns, long before their elected leaders could even breathe.

Mayor Stiller was the exact opposite of New Bern's previous mayor. Where Constantino ruled with a strangling fist, Stiller's grasp was whisper light. He was chosen for his likeability in the town and it was Jakes belief, due to his malleability. Russell and those men who had helped bring down Constantino, ran the town. Maybe Russell Williams was not a politician by any stretch of the imagination, but he was a leader and could see past himself to the bigger picture. Much like Jake, where he pointed his Mayor the town often followed.

"We are going to need another meeting between our towns, before we meet with Perkins next month." Jake told Russell, as he rubbed at a particularly itchy spot on his thigh, under the stiff fabric of his uniform. His pain meds were doing a decent job on the pain, but healing wounds and wool blend did not mix. "Maybe our two towns have been taking solid baby steps back to becoming good neighbors" Jake nodded at Russell "but we need to create a more 'progressive' partnership if we want to stand a chance of surviving and thriving in this new world and with this new government."

"What are you thinking Jake?" Gail asked her son, but had a feeling about where Jake was going with the conversation.

"We need to talk to Gray about the salt mines and to New Bern's town council about the assembly plant. I think both towns will be more united if they both have a stake in the other…"

"Gray is going to bulk…" Eric warned and Jimmy nodded in agreement over his drink. But they all knew it had to be done. Eric, Russell and Jake had been talking about this subject since after the first meeting with the government.

"I know and it's going be expected, but he's not the only owner of the mines and he needs to understand that." Jake pointed out.

"So you spoke to Skylar?" Russell asked.

"I didn't, not yet." Jake promised. "But I did have a short chat with Dale a couple weeks back. I think the two of them want what's best for the town, despite the dollar signs in Dale's eyes. He's young—she's young and their not quite sure how to play out Skylar's inherited position in this town."

"Agreed." Russell nodded, remembering his own dealings with the two. "Our town's futures need not to depend on teenagers misguided decisions."

"Someone has to talk to Skylar soon, Jake. Get her in on this, or at least some of it." Heather spoke up. "I told you guys before, when I was stuck at Ft. Liberty I overhead things like 'amassing the new government's local resources'. It only makes sense that with things as they are, the government would declare eminent domain on both our towns' resources…"

"And offering only a pittance of what those things are worth to our survival." Jake finished. "I know." Jake squeezed her hand. "If they take enough from us, we wouldn't be a town, just slaves in it, doing the governments bidding."

"New Bern had enough of that under Constantino's rule." Russell took a deep swallow of his drink. "We will not stand for that again." The group sat quietly for a moment, letting the sounds of the bar cover them.

"Then our towns are just gonna have to make it so they depend on one anther more than the governments offerings." Gail broke the silence. "Make it harder for the government to plant too many roots into places they don't need to be." Gail spoke and everyone at the table nodded.

"So we hold on to our towns **and** our freedom to run them, **if** we learn to play nice with each other and share our toys?" Stanley summed up.

As serious the discussion was, Jake and Gail had to bite back a laugh, as did Russell and Jimmy. Heather, however let out a chuckle. And Eric just shook his head at Stanley's rudimentary break down of the situation, but he had to agree. Heather straitened herself and then looked soberly to each of her companions, raising her glass to the center of the table. "Here's to being better play pals."

If only it could be that simple.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

A short time later and to neither Jake nor Heathers chagrin, Gail herded up one half of her family, while saying goodnights to the other half. Eric was going to help Mary with the bar for the rest of the night, while Stanley had already been drug to the Richmond's Chevy by the other Richmond's, who wanted to get their patriarch home before he got too much more drink in him. Russell and his men had taken Deputy Taylor's offer to stay with his family in town for the night, so they could head back to New Bern the next day.

Before Jake and Heather left the bar, Eric tossed the Roadrunners keys into Jakes hand. Eric had driven all of them to the cemetery earlier that day. "I could get use to that car." Eric smiled when Jake gave him the eye before heading for the door.

"Keys, Jake."

Jake turned and found Heathers outstretched hand before him. "Don't worry, she likes me. We have an understanding." Heather coyly smiled, wiggling her fingers.

"Now it's a she?" Jake smirked and placed the keys into Heathers palm. "And what sort of deals are you making with my car. We still haven't talked about all your other dealings, you and your monkey squad have been making under the 'establishments' nose." Jake pointed a thumb at his own chest.

Heather stood on her tiptoes and gave Jake a distracting kiss so not to answer the last question, before answering the first. "I give her regular oil changes and maintnace, and she stays your trustworthy steed. No breakdowns."

Jake rolled his eyes and let out a deep breath. _'And __**I'm**__ the one with the criminal past.'_

When the Roadrunner made it to their neighborhood, Heather noticed something was different from when she left it yesterday. Lights were on. She turned to Jake. "I didn't fix the windmill?"

"Fred did, Honey." Gail spoke from the back seat. "May told me at the wake. She said he did it early this morning, before the funeral.

"Old Fred." Jake smiled in appreciation as Heather pulled the car into the drive and under the porch light.

Jake carefully made his way out of the car, along with his mother, placing the cane under his arm to offer her a hand. "Jake, if you're going use that god awful cane, then use it. This old lady is fine." Gail smacked away his hand.

"I'm gonna check on Fred's work." Before leaving, Heather gave Jake a quick peck on the cheek and headed for the back half of the property. Soon the ray of a small flashlight could be seen bobbing towards the windmills position.

'_Where does she keep that light?'_ Jake watched the movement of the light till his mother began to push him towards the front door. Even now, it was still hard for him to let Heather leave his sight.

Mother and son entered the house. Jake sat down on the nearby piano bench while Gail turned on a small light. "Jake, Honey. Do you want something to eat? I can fix something for you and Heather?"

"No Ma. I think I'm gonna go upstairs and get ready for bed." Jake rubbed his leg. "Been a long day and I just want to lie down. Maybe ask Heather when she gets back?"

Gail walked over to her son on the bench and took his face into her hands, her face beaming. "I'm proud of you. Always have been." She kissed him on the forehead and smiled at her son's confused face. She'd wanted to say that to her son all day. She fussed with a tendril of his hair and then walked to the kitchen before Jake could comment.

Jake sat wide eyed and silent, and taken a little off guard by his mother's out of the blue declaration of motherly pride, but touched by it nonetheless. He watched her retreating form enter the kitchen and heard her begin to hum some little forgotten tune as she pulled out one of her small pots from the cupboard. _'Women are a mystery, especially moms.' _

Just as he was about to get up and leave for his slow march up the steps, a small beam of light caught his attention as it bobbed past the kitchen window and onto the back porch. There was a knock on the screen door and his mother let Heather in with a laugh, when the younger woman explained she had once again forgotten her keys. He watched Heather smile warmly at his mom, blue eyes twinkling, while she took off the light jacket she had worn that day, and then he gently grinned when she gracefully conceded to his mother's insistent offer of a cup of soup and a biscuit.

Jake had yet to be noticed. His mother was too busy providing sustenance to her newest family member to look back at him. He'd been there long enough that she may have thought he had already gone up stairs. And Heather had not noticed him in the dim corner of the living room. So Jake continued to sit and watch from the shadows of his own house, a voyeur in it once more.

He wasn't sure if it was five minutes that passed or fifteen, watching the domestic moment between the two people he loved the most in this word. But in that moment he was shown a now possible lifetime out ahead of him. Maybe it was because of the funeral and the guilty relief that survivors bore. Maybe it was something else he had yet to put a name to, but in that moment he realized just how lucky a man he was to be alive.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Jake had gotten his uniform jacket and shoes off with much difficulty. The pain meds had faded earlier in the evening and his practical side hesitated using anymore of the scarce supply on a pain that didn't even touch his top ten list. Hurting, none the less, Jake felt like a weak old man when he tried peeling off his black tee-shirt and all but yanking off the bandage across his back, leaving it hanging half off his wound. "Shit."

"Honey, are you okay?" Gail had finished up with Heather downstairs and was turning in for the night. Heather had insisted on cleaning up and Gail happily took the offer.

"Yeah, Mom. Good night."

Gail stood at his door a moment, before replying. "Goodnight Honey."

Once he heard her door closed, he tossed his shirt in the far corner and turned his back to the mirror. "Crap." He mumbled. Jake grabbed his pajama pants and flipped them over his other shoulder. Just as he left his room to find the first aid-kit in the bathroom, he came face to face with Heather in the hall.

Heather sucked in her breathe when she caught herself from running into a half naked Jake. _'You slept on that chest last night. Get a grip'_

"Sorry, just going to get the first-aid kit." Jake spoke quietly, not to stir his mother down the hall.

"You alright?"

"Yeah, just need to re-bandage my back. I'm fine." A silence fell after the answer and they both continued to stare.

"Okay." Heather turned away towards her room and could hear Jake open the bathroom door. _'Smooth Heather, smooth...'_

Before Jake stepped inside the bathroom, Heather heard herself ask "Would you like some help—with your back? You might not be able to reach to get the tape on good?" _'Not to mention too tired to reach, in general.'_ He'd never admit to it, but she noticed his movements lagging earlier tonight and knew it had been a long day for him and his assorted aches and pains.

Jake quietly nodded his head and made way for her to walk past. "Thank you."

Heather swiftly entered and dug out the family's first aid kit from the small closet by the door.

"The bulb burnt out. You're going to have to turn on that other light." Heather motioned to the small plug in child's lamp on the counter. Jake switched it on and a dull rainbow colored glow spread over the bathrooms tiled walls.

Jake chuckled lightly. "Eric's old circus lamp. April was going to use it for…" Jake stopped and shut away the memory. What was it with funerals bringing up the dead who you thought you'd already put to rest. Jake had genuinely liked his sister-in-law. She was smart and tough and Jake had been very happy about being an uncle.

"Can't have a funeral and not bring back the dead, Jake. Or not be grateful for the rest of us still living." Heather knew that with certainty. She had hurt for the Greens when Stanley told her of April and the baby's death. Eric had spoken little of it when she was around him in New Bern, but she knew it had been devastating to the family by the way it was eating him up. Living with the Greens, in the house that April had lived for a short time, little reminders always resurfaced and it still stung all the Greens.

Today, however, brought back another of the dead for Heather and another hard day for the Greens and the town. Seeing Jake standing in front of Bills flag draped coffin, brought Johnston Greens funeral to mind. But today, Jake wore that uniform, the same as Bill, dead in that box. And then that poem… Heather mentally cursed herself as she laid gauze and tape on the counter, along with the scissors. _'It wasn't Jake and I'm not going to think of a next time.'_ Thinking like that did neither of them any good.

"My dad use to say that the dead never really leave us to begin with." Heather spoke as she unwound the gauze and cut it to size. "Said we didn't really need funerals or stones to be our reminders. That if we really needed tangible proof that the dead were still with us, all we had to do was look around our everyday lives and we'd see them right at our side."

Jake watched Heather with wonder in the mirror. If she only knew how right her father was or how special was she. "Your dad was a smart man." Jake rubbed his hand over his chest as he watched her, jangling his grandfathers and then his father's dog tags.

"I didn't know Jimmy's dad died on the job." Jake changed the subject, but not quite. Jimmy's eulogy to Bill had come to mind earlier in the night, talking to Jimmy over a drink. "Today was hard on him. I know that before the bombs, all of Jim's best friends wore the star. Bill was the last one..." Jake found himself trailing off again into a morbid topic. _'Damn, I hate funerals.'_

"Last one what, Jake?" Heather asked as she began to peal away the rest of his mangled bandage.

"Last one wearing a badge and not be dead." Jake answered then watched as her reflection in the mirror began to change. He watched her eyes loose their professional concentration at the task at hand, saw her face pale even in the odd colored light of the room. She had pulled all of the gauze and tape from his skin and could now see the wound in his shoulder, in all its discolored glory. The troubled look on her face reminded him of the one she had in the storm shelter, as his mother and Jessica tended to his leg wounds. Coupled with his last statement and the look on her face, Jake felt guilt once again hit him in the gut.

She felt her eyes grow heavy, but didn't turn from the blood crusted wound before her. "How-how did it happen?" She quietly asked. She knew the where and who.

Jake swallowed hard, watching her in the mirror. "A ricochet off the rocks behind me. He couldn't find me in the rain and dark, so he shot blind into the woods trying to make me give away my position." Before he could say anything more she was touching the skin just beyond the injury, making his body nearly jump at the contact.

"And this? Her finger fell to another spot on his back and he remembered as if it was yesterday. "How-how?"

"Crashed a Cessna out in McMurry's woods. A piece of my seat went into my back. It was my 3rd solo flight. I was fourteen. Broke another rib that day." _'What was I trying to prove that day? Stupid kid.' _

Heather quietly nodded and reached to the next visible scar on Jake's body, feeling its raised texture under her finger tip. Maybe it didn't do any good to linger on these bits of evidence, that there were other times Jake had come close to death. But these marks were apart of him and she was compelled to know…

"This?" She quietly asked. Jake was beginning to understand what she was doing and knew he would answer whatever she asked. He wanted her to know him now, no matter how difficult that could prove to be.

"Gun shot, small caliber. Business acquaintance in Brazil. He hadn't been aiming at me, but he shot me." He felt her fingers ghosting over the exit wound just above his hip and then to its entry wound a few inches forward, just above his belt. It was all he could do not to shudder at the intimate touch of her purposeful fingers or stop their chosen path to his side. He knew the scar she was going to see next.

Heather was facing Jakes side now. She had yet to meet the eyes of his reflection and was now bringing her hand to a scar she had noticed so many months ago. The one that ran down his chest. "This scar, Jake?"

Jake sucked in an unsteady breath and could feel the heart under her gentle touch, being squeezed by memories. "Fifteen minutes after we left Amal and Ahmad in the square, my company was hit by a mortar attack at the airport." Jake's voice became a whisper. "A small piece of the truck in front of me went into my chest. We lost a man. Lost our clients anyway…." Jake paused. "I—I didn't take cover." Jake felt his throat tighten and cleared it quickly. "I was supposed to move, but I didn't—I just couldn't…" his voice wavered. _'I didn't want to.'_

He watched Heather close her eyes and pull her hand away to cover her mouth. He knew his answer had hurt her too. Her tears now flowed freely down her cheeks and Jake could feel each one. It wasn't till Heather, did he understand just how much the things he did, could hurt the ones he loved.

"Are you sure, Heather?" She heard his voice break in the asking. She quickly met Jakes eyes in the mirror and found her breath catch, looking into the pained beauty of their dark depths. She didn't need to ask what he meant, she just knew. He wanted to know if she still wanted to be with him.

Heather drew in a breath and reached her hand to the scar on his chest once more, spreading her hand across it. She never took her eyes from Jakes. "This…" she lightly patted his chest. "And all the rest, are pieces of you, that can never be changed. You said it yourself last night and I agree."

"But these scars, all of them, made you the man I'm looking at right now. And you know what, Jake? He is amazing. He's flawed. He's stubborn. And he's always going to be in the thick of things, because he's not the kind of man who can just sit still and let things happen. And I accept that, and could love that man for just that fact alone." Heather stared at the frustrating man in the mirror. "But the one thing that I can not accept is that you don't love him too."

Jake looked away and up at the ceilings then back to Heather, not making a sound. She was saying things he wasn't ready to hear just yet, but maybe someday he'd be able to do. With her at his side, he believed in the possibility.

"So don't ask me ever again, if I'm sure." Heather commanded. "And stop worrying about hurting me! The only way you do hurt me is when you hurt yourself." Heather patted his heart. "That is something we are going to have to work on."

Jake quietly nodded his head and let out a small shaky laugh, as he brushed away his stray tears with the back of his hand. "Deal."

Jake turned to face her. Sliding his hands upon her hips, he drew her to him and rested his head upon her shoulder. Heather stroked his dark tresses and held onto his forearm. They both breathed in and just stood in the dim multi-colored light in front of the bathroom mirror.

They were alone, so much that the only other person in the house wasn't going to come knocking on the door. No halls filled with clinic workers or a storm shelter packed with scared town's folk. It was just them and they were letting themselves become intimately aware of that fact.

Heather took in a deep intake of breath and shook when Jake's long fingers began to spread over her hips and slide up to her ribcage where they began to knead the area just under her arms. With just this touch, the moment between them quickly changed from a moment of comfort for him, to something else where Jake was the one in control.

He touched her with certainty and familiarity, although they had never gone down this road in their relationship before. He drew her in closer to his chest, so he could feel more of her, smell more of her and was rewarded with a little sigh. _'God, I want to hear that again.' _Jake raised his head from her shoulder and placed a ghost of a kiss to the bottom of her neck, while he began to lazily trace the outline of one of her ribs with his thumb.

"Jake…" she half whispered, half sighed as her eyes closed with his subtle but effective ministrations. Jake's hands had wandered back down to her hips as his kisses moved a trail up her neck. With the sound of his name falling from her lips he drew her body tight and flush with his own, leaving no mystery what this moment was doing to his body.

Heathers eyes snapped open, feeling him push against her stomach and gasped. Jakes lips quickly left her jaw, and was now studying her lips with a half lidded smolder. Without a word, he kissed her or was it claim her? There was no asking from his firm, full lips, only possession and the same intensity he put into every other action in his life, only now all that intensity was being focused on her.

She was overwhelmed by him, but had no wish to slow any of this moment down. Because her body wanted, no, needed to fill the same space as Jakes, even though logic and science told her it was an impossibility. This need increased the confidence of her movements and she began to rub her body against him, eliciting a deep rumble from the back of his throat. In that moment, she felt like she'd discovered some great find. _'Wow, I caused that!'_

Her knee bent and began to trail up Jake's leg, wanting to be closer and…

"Ahhhhh!" Jake hissed in pain.

"Oh God, Jake." Heathers hands flew to her mouth. "I am so sorry." Distracted by feeling and not thinking, Heather had drug her leg up Jake's injured one, putting a painful damper to their moment before it could escalate. _'Stupid. Stupid. Stupid.'_

"It's okay." Jake swallowed hard and closed his eyes. "Maybe it's best we don't start something I might not be able to finish tonight." When he did make love to her, and if tonight was a accurate preview of what's to come, he wanted no reason not to be able to love her the way she deserved and he desired; with all of him ready and able. The willing part was proving not to be an issue for either of them.

He caught her eye and gave her a suggestive smirk, before pulling her back into him, kissing the top of her head. He turned his head and looked in the mirror at Heather smiling into his chest, beet red. She had forgotten where they were and looked startled a moment when she looked up from his chest and met his deep, warm gaze in the mirror. _'And now she's my bashful little school teacher, once more.' _His smile increased.

"Keep looking at me like that and I might not be able to control my actions and injure you some more." Jake gave a silent laugh and pulled her into a firm hug.

"Come on; let me get you bandaged up." Heather pulled away. Jake nodded his head and grudgingly let her go.

Jake watched her quickly finish his back. He happily noted that her skin was still on the pink side every time their eyes met in the mirror. When she was done, Jake finished with the bandage on his thigh, for obvious reasons, and Heather left to get ready for bed and then check all the windows and doors. Once finished, he cleaned up the mess and pulled on his pajama pants and tee. Stepping out into the hall he was met by Heather coming back up the steps.

"I checked ALL the doors and window, Jake." Heather defended. "Its all good, Sheriff."

"I know." He smiled and reached out his hand to her. "Come on." Jake nodded to his room.

"But your mother?" Heather looked down the hall to Gail's room.

"My mother would be disappointed if you weren't taking the best care of me..."

"You mean further inflicting injury?" her smile wan.

Jake shook his head. "Come on."

Heather took his hand and he led her to his room. He turned off the light and lowered himself, stiffly to his bed, while Heather removed her flannel robe, revealing a tank top and shorts. She turned, realizing she had an audience. "That's the end of the show for you, Mister." She pointed.

Jake's smile shinned brightly in the moonlight. "Just loving the flannel."

Heather returned a knowing smile and crawled under the blankets he had raised for her. Easily, she found her place against his side and Jake wrapped his arm around her body as if it was just another night. She marveled at how perfect it was for their forms to fit this way. And then her mind quickly drifted to thoughts of earlier and how their bodies showed promise fitting in other ways. Heather felt a deep shiver drive through her.

"Cold?" Jake pulled her a little closer.

"No." Heather smiled into his chest and bunching up a handful of his shirt in her hand. "Just right."

Jake smiled down at the top of her head and then kissed it. "I love you."

"I love you, too." She kissed his cotton covered chest. "Now go to sleep. You've had a long day-y…" Heather broke off into a yawn. "And you're tired."

"Yes mam." Jake lightly chuckled, stroking the hand on his chest.

In a few moments, Heathers breathing began to even out as she drifted into sleep. Jake could only smile.

**TBC.**


	23. Chapter 23

**Disclaimer:** Yep, don't own Jericho or its character's—wish I did right about now—but the story line is mine along with the words I give them.

**Authors Note:** This will be part 1 of a 2 part chapter. It was just so long to read (over 1,000 words) and it will give me a couple more days to work the bugs out of the other half of the chapter. Ironic enough this chapter will be put out this week, the week of love. Just consider the second half a St. Valentines Day gift. ;)

Once again, this chapter wasn't beta read. I just wanted to get it out there. So please, if something hits ya wrong please critique. I have thick skin and may wish to beta later. And a reminder that this **is **my therapy, but not from the show ending prematurely. This will become my H/J therapy for an upcoming season that seems to have chosen another pairing. I will not be able to finish my story as planed, before the new season, however you will be given a twofer this week with a part 1 and 2. The chapter following this two parter will be the last. The title is "Dad". I hope you enjoy this chapter and thank you for reading.

**Warning**: Language and mushy memories, along with grammar and spelling gone wild.

**Chapter 21: Home (Part. 1)**

by Ann Pendragon

"Jake, believe me when we tell you, everything is quiet. Aside from finishing up ongoing storm clean up and repair, it's been business as usual today."

This had not been the Sheriffs first call of the day or of the morning. And if today was like the five before it, it wasn't going to be Jakes last call of the day, either. Jimmy was taking it all in stride, being that he understood and admired Jakes dedication to his title, but—well, even saints had a limit to their patience.

"Jimmy, business as usual for us can't be described as quiet." Jake knew he was being snide, but he hadn't known quiet to last in Jericho longer than it took for another pile of shit to hit the fan. "I'm going to have Stanley come get…"

"No doing, Jake." Another voice now fought for air time on Jimmy's end. "Here, let me see that…" Stanley now had the radio. "You know I have my orders from a higher power than you, buddy. I cross that higher power and my higher power at home gets on my case."

Jake rolled his eyes and was about to retort when he heard Stanley saying something to Jimmy, not realizing he was still holding the button.

"…and you'd think he'd enjoy being home alone with Heather most the day—if you know what I mean…" Stanley snickered on the other end of the radio in Jake hand.

"Stanley that's none of our business!" Jake heard Jimmy caution. "Stanley, you left your finger on the button. Damn!" Jimmy swore and Jake just shook his head against the radio. "Jake. Everything is fine, okay. I promise I will call you if **anything** needs your specific attention."

Jake did not miss the pleading in Jimmy's voice or the frustration. "I'm sorry Jim. I know the town is in sure and experienced hands, I'm just not use to being on the side lines, that all." That was an understatement.

"Understand, Jake. Just catch up on getting better." The deputy's voice softened. "I'll bring next week's schedule by tomorrow morning, okay?"

A deep rumble of frustration crawled from Jakes throat as he looked around his homey house arrest. "Yeah, sure. Jake out." The radio was delivered back to its base with a smack.

Jake rose to his feet and wondered into the living room, the morning sunlight bright and inviting for a nap. It's all he could think to do right then. He'd read all of Heathers Popular Mechanic and Scientific America, even went through half of his moms National Geographic. And at present, he didn't have the attention span to crack open any of the books in the house.

As for being of use in the house, all the small repairs or chores around the house that didn't involve washing or folding cloths—Jake had his limits—his mother or Heather had already done or he had completed himself during the last couple of days. Bigger things, like the shingles on the roof or—Jake sneered—his job, were being done by other more able bodies.

Jake looked over at the clock on the mantle as it struck eleven. His mother was next door with the Reynolds, making Jericho's version of toothpaste with the neighbors and Heather had left with Fred to do some work at the garage. She'd acted as if she was abandoning him the first time she traipsed off with one of her crew, a couple days earlier. But Jake had waved off her concerns, telling her he was glad that at least one of them was being useful to the town. She only shook her head at him, and then kissed him on her way out the door.

She was never gone the entire day and spent most of her time at home by his side. They'd talked about everything, from her projects at the garage to each others favorite cartoons when they were children. He loved getting to know her this way. Loved seeing her this way; smart, funny, comfortable in her own skin, comfortable telling him more about her world and bravely asking questions about his own. It was foreplay for both of them, and he knew it. By the end of their talks or at the end of the evening, they'd find themselves quietly held up somewhere, learning unspoken things about one another. Like how she enjoyed his hand on the back of her neck when they kissed or how he bit his lip when she did anything that turned him on. Jake figured he'd be missing his bottom lip by next week.

Learning about her had become like a high for Jake. One that he happily indulged in and would suffer staying at home, if it meant knowing just one more bit of Heathers life or one more piece of her body.

Jake stretched and snapped his back, only feeling a slight tug of pain, which was to be ignored. Hell, he wasn't even using the cane anymore. It sat on the piano bench on the other side of the room. _'I'm back tomorrow. I'm able.' _Jake paced the living room rug a couple times, before stretching out on the couch, his arm over his eyes to ward off the sun. _'I did get a lot of time with Heather, though. That's been nice…'_ Jake grinned, eyes closed under his hand. _'Very nice.'_

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Heather had spent the morning figuring how to make a new forge for the shop out of a Chevy break drum the crew had scrapped from a totaled 1983 Jimmy Blazer. She'd seen something in an article she kept from college, how to do just that and finally gave up at the garage to go home and search her boxes of stuff to find it.

She hadn't noticed Jake asleep on the couch till after she let her bag flop to the floor in the entryway. To her surprise, he didn't stir under his afghan, so she quietly snuck past, and then down the basement steps to continue her mission.

It had only taken a few minutes to look through the things she and Jake had scavenged from her bombed out apartment. The box she wanted had been at the top of the heap.

"There we go." Heather lifted out her prized magazine clippings, but then spotted a faded blue and green lunch box that had sat just underneath the pile. Putting down the packed file folders, she lifted the box and flipped it over, smiling at her old friend Scooby Do and the Mystery Machine. Heather unlocked and pushed open the basements storm door and then sat down in the warm midday sunlight that now streamed through the screen door and across the concrete floor. Gently she opened up the little tin.

A gust of spring wind blew through the screen, dancing the strands of her hair over her face and tossed about the edges of some of the photos and scraps in the lunch box. Heather caught the first photo that ruffled up and turned it over to reveal a photo of a young couple sitting on New Bern High Schools stadium bleachers. The bleachers were nearly empty around them and by the way the couple was huddled together under their shared blanket, you could tell it was an end of season game and that they were very much in love. _'The preacher and the high school art teacher.'_ Her parents smiled from the photo and she could not help but smile back.

Neither of her parents ever had a lot of money, so the two would go to Friday night home games as a date. Even after Heather was born and up till her mother's death, they'd make an evening of clumsy tackles and hot dogs. Her father, a man of the church, was also a man of the grid iron; contrary to both institutions holy day being Sunday. And Heathers mother, Clair, went for the hot dogs, the excitement of the crowd and Thomas Lisinski. When the photo in Heathers hand was taken, her mother was already two months along into her pregnancy and one week away from marrying the reverend.

Jake had quietly inched down the basement steps. He'd been wakened by Heathers tool bag hitting the entryway floor, before she went down the basement steps. Now half way down the steps himself, he could see her sitting Indian style in her overalls, beside a pile of boxes. Her small silhouette framed in the late morning sun coming through the screen door. Without the cane, she did not hear him reach the bottom of the steps and continued to look at something she held in her lap. He heard her though. As he stepped closer, she sniffled and pulled a sleeve across her face. Jake frowned…

"Hey, you okay?" Jake made it to her side.

"Jake." Heather startled. She looked like she had been on another world and had just been pulled back to her spot on the concrete floor.

"I was just looking for something to help me with a project down at the garage and found this…" She gave a brief grin, placing the photo in her hand back on top the others photo's in the box on her lap.

Jake could see she was upset through her now present smile. Carefully, he lowered himself behind her and placed his sore leg out beside her with a grimace, knowing it was gonna be hell getting back up.

"The cold concrete isn't going to do that leg no favors." Heather warned.

Jake grinned and looked her over then to the pile of mementos in her lap. He reached to her face with his thumb and brushed away some moisture she had not caught. "You okay?" he asked once more.

Heather turned her attention back to the top photo for a moment and picked it back up, handing it to Jake. "I found a bunch of old photos I'd kept from home. I haven't looked at them since—well, a long time."

Jake looked at the photo of a happy couple wrapped up on stadium bleachers. The man was clean cut and slim. His eyes were bright and his smile bashful beside the vibrant young woman in his embrace under the blanket.

"Your mother was beautiful." Jake gave Heather a warm smile. "Looks like your father thought so too."

Heather took back the photo and gave him a quiet smile.

"You look just like her." Jake kissed the side of Heathers head, rubbing his hands up and down her arms.

"Yeah." Heather placed the photo back in the box. "Except for the eyes."

"Heather…" Jake knew what she meant and wanted to comfort her.

"It was that photo that made my father tell me—tell me about me." Heather quickly interrupted. "I always wondered why I had blue eyes and Mom and Dad had brown. Mom said I was a throwback to my dad's mother, and Dad never said anything otherwise, so I just believed them."

Heather absentmindedly flipped through the contents of her old lunch box. "I had brought a bunch of photos to Dad's hospital room, the last time he was sick. Actually he had asked me to. We laughed about how mom use to cross her eyes in the middle of Dad's sermons, just to throw him off." Heather picked up a photo of her Parents in their Sunday best, standing with a very young Heather on her fathers shoulders. Jake reached for it and smiled at Heathers memories. He was beginning to understand where Heather had gotten her humor.

"And we talked about music that last night." Heather continued. "My family loved music. Mom would always have a radio on in the kitchen when she was cooking, or we'd sit around the piano and mom would play popular songs, show tunes—anything Dad could find the sheet music for." Jake watched the wistful smile emerge on Heathers face as she reached into the box on the other side of her and pulled out a large folder of sheet music, some of the edges scorched by the mortar round that had damaged Heathers apartment months before. "We'd sing along, me and dad, while mom played. And after I went to bed, Mom would continue to play songs just for Dad." She felt Jake's arms gently wrap around her shoulders and she leaned into his comfort.

"Then we got to that photo" Heather put the sheet music back in the box. "He just kept looking at it. I thought he was just tired, and was going to call it a night, so he could rest…

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

"_You know you were with us in that photo?" The ailing Preacher smiled at his young daughter, beside his hospital bed._

_Heather looked at him questioningly and then it dawned on her. "Oh, you mean Mom had __**this**__ bun in her oven then." Heather pointed at herself._

_The Preacher started to laugh and began to cough at the same time. Heather reached for his water, but he waved it away. "You-you are your Mother." He got out the words between gasps._

_Heather grinned, happy to hear her fathers laugh, as labored as it was. His smile made her hopeful that the end of their time together wasn't drawing so near. "So my parents had a shotgun wedding, huh? The scandal Dad." Heather chuckled, trying to razz her father, but he had become quiet._

"_Dad?" Heather had felt the mood change between them and felt drawn to the next question. "Do we have any other skeletons in the family closet?" _

_Thomas Lisinski carefully placed the photo back in the box, taking one more loving look at the beautiful woman in the photo, and hoped beyond all hope she'd forgive him when he joined her in Heaven soon. _

"_I need you to know I loved your mother with every fiber of my being. From the moment I saw her, I loved her. It wasn't hard." The man in him sadly smiled at his beloved daughter. "She was my every dream sent to me by heaven and you were a gift. The day we learned you were coming into this world…" he paused, thinking of the bitter sweet day sitting in Clair's doctors office, a month after Clair told him about the attack . "I want you to know we loved you from the very start…" _

_oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo_

"And then he told me about the rape." Heathers voice wavered but did not break. "He wanted mom to report it, but she absolutely refused. Told him that she—that they were better off if it was forgotten and that it would cause just too much pain." Heather hands and arms now entwined with the ones around her body. "My father always felt that it was more than that, that the man who had done it to her was someone she had known and that man had frightened her more than any loss of justice. Dad believed she was trying to protect him…" she trailed off. "She was right to fear him, Jake, and to want to protect Dad. That man…"

"You stood up to **that man**, how many times and did not back down." Jake interrupted over her shoulder, leaning his cheek into her hair. Neither felt the need to say the mans name. He didn't deserve that kind of honor. "I think your mother would have been proud of you for standing up the way you did." _'I know I am.'_

Heather shifted a little in Jakes arms, to look him in the eye. "She was with me when I was back in New Bern." Heathers eyes were round, but dry as they peered resolutely into Jakes. "I did the things I did in New Bern for her, too."

Jake nodded his head in understanding and pushed back some of the hair that had fallen into Heather's face. He still wished he had been there for her, back then. _'Woulda, coulda, shoulda…'_

"I just wished…" Heather began to pick at the photos in the box now neglected on the concrete.

"Wish what?" Jake squeezed her in his arms.

"I never would have believed that memories of home could hurt this much or be this complicated. I just wish I could only have 'these' memories…" Heather pushed at the tin of photos. "…be what I remember." Heather shook her head in disgust. "A childish and unrealistic wish, but what I want."

Heather became quiet and the two fell into silence, looking out at the world past the basement screen door. He was happy she was talking about these things with him, but it hurt knowing what she wished for was, as she already knew, unrealistic. Bad memories were the easiest to recall, he understood this better than most. But if the good memories weren't given the opportunity to be heard, the bad memories were the only one's left to shape the future.

There was no doubt in Jakes mind that Heather was always meant to have a bright future and to be not only a beam of light in his world, but the world they shared. He would do anything in his power not to have that light dim, even if that just meant making her smile. Jake reached a hand into the good memories she held in that little tin box and picked up another photo.

"Your parents sounded like good people. Kind…" he kissed the side of her head "…smart, funny, just like you."

She knew what he was doing and smiled. "My mother would have loved you, you know. Would have loved teasing you, just to get that smile of yours going. I think she would have likened you to one of her tragic romance novel guys. The brooding rebel hero with the heart of gold." Heather teased and got her mothers wish.

Jake smiled, chuckling softly. "I wouldn't go that far." He felt a little pink. "And your dad?"

"Dad was good at reading people, giving them chances…" Heather continued.

"That's a no." Jake chuckled. Heather smacked his arm and rolled her eyes.

"Dad was good at reading people." Heather continued. "Maybe at first glance he'd try to circle the wagons, but once he knew you—well, Dad believed in a persons actions showing who they are, not their past. It wouldn't take long for dad to peg you as one of the good guys."

By the time they had gone through half of Heathers photos and the memories attached, the basement stairs gave a creak…

"So this is where the two of you went. I was gonna call you for lunch." Gail made it down the steps and sat on a foot stool near the couple by the door. "So what do we have here?"

"Memories. Went looking for something thing, found a little bit of everything else." Heather handed the old lunch box to Gail with a smile.

"Well, that sounds like memories to me." She winked, watching her son pull Heathers back against his chest. Gail grinned and began to look through the photos.

"Now look at that." Gail picked up a baby photo. "You made such a pretty little baby. Now Jake on the other hand…"

"Ma…"

"Jake had the deepest, most expressionate eyes. Still does." Gail smiled to her son. "My little old soul, I called him." Gail grinned. "Had all the nurses gawking at those pretty peepers…"

"Mom!" Jake groaned. "Your killing me!"

"But the rest of him" Gail continued, ignoring her son. "Let's just say he needed a haircut then too and his nails clipped. Made everyone wonder if I had taken up with the wolf man when he was born.

Heather began to laugh, holding onto Jake's arms while he attempted not to smile. "That's great mom. Scare her…" Jake caught himself and Heathers laughing quickly quieted as a blush tinted her features. They met one another's eyes.

Gail smiled. _'I'm going to get a truckload of grandbabies with these two.'_

While the couple continued their odd silence, Gail came up with another photo of interest. It was in a church, near one of the windows, showing a large cross and dove etched into the glass. A tall, gentle looking man in a preacher's Sunday best, stood beside a short brunette that very well could have been Heathers twin. A small girl was balanced on her fathers shoulders, her arms raised. They all wore large smiles.

"I met them." Gail turned the photo to Heather. "Not really a meet and greet, but I met them a couple of times around the concession stands at our local football games. They were a handsome couple and very well liked, as I remember." Gail gave a kind smile to the young woman in her son's arms.

"Your father" Gail nodded to Jake. "He was considering the position of Mayor back then; or rather EJ was pushing him into the office." She grinned. "EJ didn't have any doubt that Johnston was to be Jericho's next mayor. Frankly, no one doubted that fact except Johnston." Gail eyed her son pointedly. "He had a lot of doubts back then. Thought his time leading men was over when he left the military. He thought that horse farming with my family, raising his family out on the farm and going hunting was the extent of his dreams, but life had other plans for him." Gail firmly held her son's eyes. "In the end, some men are just meant to do bigger things than their own dreams."

Jake sat still behind Heather, caught in his mothers meaningful words. He gently nodded his head in understanding and cleared his throat.

Gail turned back to the photos on her lap and noticed the first photos Heather had looked at earlier, of her parents sitting in the empty bleachers. "You know, I never did tell you how your father and I met." She smiled at Jake.

"It was at the clinic." Everything seemed to end or begin for her family, under that roof. "I'd just moved back to town from Topeka to take a nursing position. Honestly, I just missed home." A young Gail had originally been ecstatic to leave Jericho, when she left for college. Even as a little girl, she was independent by nature and loved the idea of being on her own. But like most, the draw to come home called when the opportunity presented its self at the local clinic.

"I hadn't been working more than an hour on my third day, when the ambulance came in, no sirens."

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

_The mayor's wife had died while she slept the night before, from a massive heart attach. The head nurse at the time, Ms. Sweeney, had her newest staff take coffee to the back room where they had settled the Mayors grieving family. _

_Gail had just reached the doorway with the coffee pot and cups when she ran into a human wall. The cups skittered across the tile floor, along with the plastic tray. And the coffee pot smashed into the ground with a resounding crash. But Gail never touched the ground._

"_I'm so sorry…" she shrieked, looking up to the man that had caught her before she could fall…_

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

"Here was your father, the Mayors son, freshly mourning his mothers passing and I couldn't draw another string of words together." She knew who he was. Everyone in town knew the eldest Green son, high school football legend and military hero. Johnston Green had returned to Jericho only a few months previous, after a severe back injury took him out of a military career.

Johnston had quickly released his hold on the petite nurse without a word and gave a brief nod, before helping her clean up the mess in silence. The entire time Gail continued reprimanding herself for checking out the grieving young man at such an inappropriate moment. "It was his eyes that I couldn't shake. Your father always had such kind eyes."

A couple days passed and Gail could not forget the Mayors son with the kind, sullen eyes. She decided to join the rest of the town at Jericho's one and only funeral home, for Mrs. Green's calling hours. She had paid her respects to the family, but hadn't seen Johnston among the crowd.

"I was about to leave the funeral home with one of my mothers friends when I heard someone call my name from the buildings back steps."

Gail had quickly said goodnight to Mrs. Price and walked over to the young man she was hoping to see. "It was just like your father to morn in his own way, away from the crowd."

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

"_I read your name tag after our collision." He saw the question on her face. "I never apologized for the mess…"_

"_It's okay." Gail sat on the step just below him. "You helped clean up, so all is forgiven." 'I sound like such an idiot.' Her inner voice screamed. She watched Johnston nod his head and look back to his hands in front of him. They sat in momentary silence. "How are you holding up?" _

"_I'm here." Johnston gave a simplified response, pulling at the suffocating tie around his throat. His mother had always forced the damn things on him. "Dad's—not so well." He paused. "I don't think he knows how to be without mom around." Johnston sadly smiled down at the pretty brunette below him and then back to his hands. "They had been high school sweethearts…" His voice weakened and he cleared his throat. _

_Without a thought, Gail placed her hand on the young mans forearm. Johnston jumped at the contact, but continued his silence beside her. "Your dad will find his way." She soothed. "As long as he has people caring about him, he'll make it through and so will you."_

_Johnston Green nodded once more and bit back unmanly tears in his silence. He wasn't sure what it was about the young nurse that felt so familiar to him. She made him want to trust her and he did. He trusted her enough to allow her to get this close to him now, when all he wanted was to just shut down and hide from the world. And he felt comfortable in her presence. He knew he didn't have to say a word in her company and could just be. _

_Johnston placed a rough hand over the small one on his arm and squeezed. He even almost believed what she said, that his father would be okay again. But knowing his father promised him otherwise. Dora Green had been the only thing that kept EJ reined in all those years and everyone who knew the Mayor knew they were all in for a bumpy ride. _

_About two weeks later, Johnston and Gail's paths would cross again. EJ Green had not disappointed his son's predictions, and had done his best to make the bumpy ride into a car crash. After nearly two decades of sobriety, EJ Green took the bottle to his lips once more. _

"_What do you mean, he shot you!" Gail yelled at the bleeding man standing in her exam room. "The doctor said it was just a deep cut needing stitches?"_

"_Keep your voice down, Gail." Johnston growled in a forced whisper. "Doc Thornton and Dad are old friends. Said I'll only need a couple stitches and if you could…"_

"_Where is Dr. Thornton?" Gail arched her dark brows and crossed her arms over her chest in challenge._

"_Went to go check on Dad at home." Johnston spoke quickly. He was beginning to feel a small measure of fear under the scrutiny of the petite hurricane in front of him. "Dad was out hunting and when I went out to get him I ended up startling him and his gun went off, grazing me. He was pretty shook up by the accident, so I had Mr. Mackey and Mr. Jenkins help me get him home." _

_Did he tell her that drinking and not hunting was really the sport of choice for his father today? Or that soon after accidentally shooting him, EJ promptly passed out? The years to come, after that day, EJ would find only marginally safer sport—women, gambling and drinking._

_Gail lowered her arms from her chest, but not the disbelief from her brow. There was some truth mixed in with the lies, here. She knew this was a bad situation for the Mayors family and a bad day for Johnston. And she couldn't help but be a little furious at the grieving Mayor for nearly ending the life of the man she had come to like a great deal, and hoped to know better. What made it all the worse was he was lying to her…?_

"_Please..." She heard the normally stoic man, plead. She could feel the frayed edge in his voice and see the weariness in his eyes. It was more than she could take. _

"_Sit!" she ordered and Johnston quickly obeyed. _

'_She doesn't believe me…'_

'_He just handed me a line of bullshit, but...'_

_Gail had finished the last stitch in Johnston's arm and was about to turn away for a bandage, when his hand came down upon her wrist. She turned to look at him and her breath caught in her chest. For a long moment he just stared right through her, as the seconds ticked out around them. _

"_Are you free Friday night?"_

_ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo_

"I said I was." Gail couldn't stop the smile that overtook her from the memories. It was just now she was remembering where she was and the young couple sitting at her feet on the basements concrete floor. She blushed when she met their rapt gazes.

"I saw your dad smile for the first time, that day." Gail grinned at her son. "I'd never felt so pleased to see another person smile like he was. Of courser I didn't have the heart to tell him he hadn't asked if I wanted to spend my one and only night free with him." Gail smiled when Heather made a small giggle.

"Soon as I could get the bandage on him, he jumped off the exam table and bolted out the door, yelling that he'd pick me up at six. About an hour later he had to call the clinic. Not only had he forgotten to pay, but he'd forgotten to ask where I lived." Gail and Heather shared a laugh and Jake grinned.

"Good to know Dad wasn't immune to acting like an idiot in front of his girl." Jake finally spoke. He'd been wrapped up in his mother's story almost as much as she. This was a piece of history he had not known about his parents or his grandfather. It explained a lot about EJ and his mother's relationship and even more EJ and his dad's. It must have been hard on his Dad, chasing after his own father for those years following his mother's death. Didn't help Jake's guilt none, knowing his Dad had to do it all over again with him, when he hit his teens and twenties.

"Well, to be honest, we both acted like idiots back then." Gail smiled slyly. "We were completely swept up in one another and proved it getting married just eight months later." Gail eyed her son with a smirk. "And then you were born seven months after that." She winked at her son when he turned pink, realizing the time frame while Heather burst into laughter.

**TBC**

_With Part 2, I will give you guys the choice of an edited or an unedited version of life events between our favorite couple. The two versions will be clearly marked. I understand some scenes—love making—are not everyone's cup of tea, but I also wanted to continue how I have always written this story—so the reader can feel what the characters are experiencing—or at least I try. On a writers note, you may argue that I can do that and keep PG-13, but I'm finding that's not me. I have tried out action, suspense, fear, love, angst, anger, family and friend moments, humor and a little secret agent thrown in, but I wanted to try out love making on the page. Hope you will like my future experiment, no mater the version you choose. And if you have any thoughts on improving my technique… Okay, that was bad. _


	24. Chapter 24

**Disclaimer:** Yep, don't own Jericho or its character's—wish I did right about now—but the story line is mine along with the words I give them.

**Authors Note:** ------- **(This Chapter is rated for MRO.)** I have placed a line where the content gets a little racy for those who wish to pass on the material and the line will end right after the part. There is an edited version for those not comfortable or of age to read this detailed a love scene. It is clearly marked "edited" beside the same title. This is my first attempt at putting out a completed love scene for viewing. I've tinkered on scraps of paper when I felt inspired, and had left it at that till now. I hope it is believable and in character or at least in my version of Jake and Heathers character. And honestly I hope it makes you twitch in your seats or at least look over your shoulder at the office, when someone walks behind you. Look at it as a belated Valentine. Also, see if you can find one of Mimi's lines in _Chap. 14 Perfect Moments_, about Heathers bed. And if you can, try re-reading part 2 with which ever version you choose. It just flows better in the head and heart.

Once again, this chapter wasn't beta read. I just wanted to get it out there. So please, if something hits ya wrong please critique. I have thick skin and may wish to beta later. And a reminder that this **is **my therapy, but not from the show ending prematurely. This will become my H/J therapy for an upcoming season that seems to have chosen another pairing.

The next and last chapter of this series is titled "Dad". You'll be getting a little bit of action, a whole lot of sentiment, and a couple surprises. I hope you enjoy reading this chapter and thank you for reading.

**Warning**: Language, adult situations, tastefully graphic sex, along with grammar and spelling gone wi—of hell, we got H/J gone wild. That's the big warning.

**Chapter 21: Home (prt.2) MRO**

by Ann Pendragon

After lunch, Heather offered to drive Gail to work. Heather had been itching to get behind the wheel of Charlotte since the old pickup had been dropped of in the Green's driveway a few days earlier from the garage and Gail was happy to save her feet. But Jake believed there was a darker purpose, that the two women just wanted more time to make his ears tingle.

"Now honey, do you think that's all us woman folk have to talk about?" Gail picked up her jacket and winked at her son. Jake suspiciously glared at the two women, envious of their escape from the house. "There's some left over pan bread in the fridge and we still have some of those canned rations if you get hungry." Gail continued before placing a quick kiss on her son's cheek.

"Mmm, yum." Jake mumbled, limping after the women as they headed for the door.

"You could cook?" Gail arched her brow and Heather turned away before she could start laughing.

"Pass. I don't see me having supper ready for you girls any time soon." He only half kidded. In all truth, Jake Green was the most dangerous in the kitchen. Staying out of it was fine for all involved.

"I wouldn't want a domesticated Jake anyway." Heather smiled sweetly before placing a quick kiss on Jakes lips and then began to adjust the tool bag on her shoulder. "Besides, the apron would be overkill." She grinned. "I'll be home before dark."

Gail smiled warmly at the burgeoning love before her. "And Jimmy's picking me up after he comes on his midnight shift." Gale had a standing arrangement with some of Jericho's law enforcement, regarding her travels after dark.

Jake nodded his head and followed the women as they went out the front door and on to the porch steps. _'No, this wasn't odd at all.'_ Him left standing on the front porch as the woman folk went off to work. Jake smiled at the thought. _'Maybe I should just go bake a cake.' _He thought sourly as he watched the two women crawl into Charlotte and were gone.

Jake had come close to picking up the radio again, when he got back into the house, but decided against it. It had only been a couple of hours and he didn't hear any gunfire or smell any smoke. Jake dully grinned, moving through the living room. He spotted EJ's cane on the piano bench in front of the old upright and picked it up, twirling the gaudy old relic of his granddads in mild irritation. He slowly found his annoyance fade and his mind wander to the memories his mother had shared earlier today.

Jake hadn't realized his Grandmothers death had been that hard on his Granddad or that changing of the man's proclivities. The EJ Green Jake was raised with was an honorable man, full of life, but he was unpredictable. Granddad drank a little too hard and he gambled often, both his money and his safety. And he chased enough women to compete with any twenty-year old, never keeping a serious relationship with any one woman. _'I guess those were things you did to fill up the space loosing her left in you.' _He shook his head sadly.

Jake sat down on the piano bench and leaned on the key cover, twirling his grandfather's cane. Jake now understood too well, what his grandfather must have felt when he lost his beloved wife. Jake had almost lost Heather and it had nearly killed him inside. _'What if I had?' _His chest tightened at the thought.

"Grandma must have been your hellcat, Granddad." Jake spoke softly and smiled.

Jake pushed up the key cover on the piano and tapped absently at keys he hadn't touched in years, thinking of the swirl of memories that had been kicked up this afternoon, good and bad. He wondered, that if he was given the chance to make another thirty some years, what memories would he keep? How many would he have shared with Heather? And then he remembered his Grandfathers favorite line and it sunk home. _'Life's too short.'_

Jake pulled from his thoughts and then his hand from the piano keys and smiled. Placing EJ's cane gently against the piano, Jake got up from the bench and headed for the basement steps.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Close to five o'clock, Heather made it home from work with her hair full of cobwebs and a arm load of fabric that Fred's wife May insisted she take. Heather had not been given the chance to work on her homemade forge at the garage, but got shanghaied into helping May Kenston rummage through her attic. The older woman had gotten half the motley crew of odds and ends sorted through, but didn't have the strength to crawl into the back corner of the old storage space.

'…_and that man of mine won't raise a finger in this house. Goes about fixing this here town, but won't help his old lady pull out a few boxes to find some of __**his**__ old tools.' _May had protested. Fred had done a disappearing act somewhere in town and without a radio, when May came looking for him. Heather was volunteered automatically to help.

"Well got my pick of his screw drivers and some fabric for Gail." Heather grinned, unlocking the front door.

No more than a few steps through the entry way, she could see Jake fast asleep on one of the living room couches. She smiled warmly at the quilt covered lump, refraining from dropping her things at the door, not wanting to wake him again. Carefully she lowered her bag to the throw rug and quietly took the fabric into the kitchen. '_Gail will love these._' Heather patted the stack of multi colored calico, before tip toeing for the steps and the much needed shower that awaited her upstairs.

When passing the living room to the steps, she hadn't noticed the lump on the couch opening its eyes.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Heather hadn't heard the music at first. And when she did, after turning off the water, she thought she was imaging it_. 'Who? How?'_

Quickly, she pulled on her underwear and tossed on her flannel robe, wrapping it tight. At the top of the steps she stopped and really listened. She knew this song. It had been one of her father's favorites. It was one he'd ask her mother to play after Heather had gone to bed, not knowing their daughter would just sneak back down the steps and sit and listen in the shadows.

Heather felt her eyes tear in realization and tentatively followed the sound of the music down the steps and into the entryway, her heart pounding in her chest.

Jake had stopped breathing, but kept playing—if it could be called that—when he heard her move down the steps. He honestly hadn't played in years, at least not since his last lessons under his mother's tutelage. He hadn't even been sure he could still read the sheet music when he pulled it out of Heathers stuff in the basement a few hours earlier. And to top it all off, Jake had never been much for big romantic gestures, much to the annoyance of his few past relationships. To say Jake wasn't at his most confident right then would have been an understatement. But he wanted to try.

So braving wrong notes and steadying unsure fingers, Jake continued to play for Heather. He picked the song because it reminded him of how she made him feel and luckier still, it was something he felt he could play. He just hoped it was one of those songs that made Heather remember better days with her family. A song that could make this house seem more like her home. And at the very least, maybe he'd provide her with some entertainment tonight, at his own expense.

Jake heard a creek behind him and then felt her sit down next to him at the piano. The smell of her damp clean hair permeated his senses and distracted his fingers to another wrong note.

"She's got a smile that heals me. I don't know why it is, but I have to laugh when she reveals me…" Heathers soft, unsure voice broke through and followed the piano's tune. Jake nearly took his fingers from the keys in surprise, but recovered quickly and continued to play.

"She's got a way about her. I don't know what it is, but I know that I can't live without her anyway…"

Before the song ended, Heathers small hand came to rest upon Jakes knee, abruptly ending the music. Jake swallowed hard and turned to meet Heathers eyes. A solitary tear rolled down her cheek and past a bright smile.

"I hope I didn't play that bad?" he half joked when he watched her brush away the tear.

"No." She laughed softly, her eyes bright with appreciation and love. "Thank you." She whispered, placing her hand upon his cheek. "Thank you so much." She smiled up into his warm deep eyes and placed a gentle kiss upon his lips, before pulling him into a hug he quickly returned.

"I wanted to make this house feel like your home too." Jake pulled back and slid a hand into her damp hair. "And I wanted another memory for us, a good one."

Heather gently shook her head and placed her hand upon his chest. _'Doesn't he know? Doesn't he see?'_

"Home isn't a place for me anymore, Jake." She rested her forehead against his and closed her eyes. "As long as I'm with you, I'm home."

Before another breath could be had, Jake dipped down and captured Heathers lips in a searing kiss. He never imagined hearing something that could fill his heart so full or make him feel so loved. And he never imagined wanting to love someone back more than he did in that moment.

Heather had not expected the force of his kiss or how quickly she felt herself respond to it. She was where she could no longer breath, but found she very well didn't care. A deep mewl escaped from the back of her throat as Jakes hand clasped the back of her neck and drew her further into the kiss. The belt of her robe had begun to loosen from her waist as their bodies moved against the other and the fabric around her neck opened just enough for her shoulder to emerge. She breathed in when his lips left hers and quickly descended upon the newly exposed flesh, devoured it in a long dragging kiss.

"Jake…" Heather moaned leaning back from his loving assault to give him more access to her damp skin, nearly sending herself backwards off the piano bench. Jake quickly caught her and the kiss abruptly ended. Breathing hard, both began to remember their surrounding and realized just how far they had slipped into the moment.

"I'm sorry." Jake whispered against her lips, trying to rein himself back in.

"I'm not." She sighed.

Jake quickly met her eyes and time stopped for both of them. Heather read the question in his deep dusky stare and felt herself shake. Swallowing hard, she bit back on her nerves and answered him with an age old request.

"Make love to me."

Every ounce of him wanted to finish what had began on the piano bench, then and there, but precious restraint pulled him back. Jake pushed his finger through her hair and cradled her jaw, catching her brilliant blue eyes with a wide smile. Brushing a calloused thumb over soft subtle lips, he took in a deep breath. _'Mine.'_

A large smile now stole across both lovers features. Still smiling, Jake slowly rose from her side and offered his hand, then guided them to the steps. Heather felt like they were moving in slow motion as they took the steps one by one, while at the same time she couldn't get her heart to slow down. _'Oh God, we are really going to do this!'_

In the upstairs hall, Jake looked back at her and squeezed her hand as they entered the upstairs hall. It wasn't hard to see she was nervous. Hell, so was he. He bent down and captured her lips in a warm kiss, before leading them to his bedroom door. Heather gently shook her head, and looked up at him with bashful eyes, giving him pause. Slowly she walked backwards, towards her own door further down the hall, her hand still entwined with his. Jake nodded his head and followed. A crooked grin tugged at his lips when 'Christening a bed' flitted through his memories.

Inside her room, Jake closed the door behind him and turned the lock, causing Heather to startle. "You know this house." Jake grinned. "Best to play it safe."

Heather nodded her head and began to play with the tie of her robe; some of her confidence had waned with the turn of the lock. She did not fear Jake. She trusted him and she wanted **this** with him, but…

"Jake, I haven't been around the block a whole lot." She eked out, still looking at the tie of her robe. She knew she must have looked like Rudolph's nose at that point and was grateful for the evenings failing light. _'I am such a spaz.'_

Jake couldn't help the smile her timid, but honest confession brought him. He'd always sensed an innocence about her. It had been one of the things that endeared him to her, but had also frightened him when they first met. Someone like her had been a mystery to him back then. Someone like her was supposed to be too good for someone like him. And a part of him still believed that. Jake walked to where she stood in the center of the room and gently took her chin it his hand and her fingers from her belt.

"You're a …?"

"No—NO!" her blush didn't let up. "May as well be." She mumbled. Jake arched his brow in curiosity.

"I-It was a pact between me and a friend." She was attempting to sound logical about the matter but was failing. "If either of us were still a virgin by high school graduation we would—well, you know…" Heather trailed off letting Jake fill in the blanks.

Presently he was trying to block out of his mind **who** that friend had been. _'Leave it to Heather to treat virginity as another problem to fix.' _

"But after that." Heather continued her nervous rambling, seeing Jakes eyes brood a little. _'Lord I hope we don't see Ted any time soon._' "Well, I already said I wasn't the most popular g---mmmph."

Jake ended her nervous speech with another consuming kiss and was rewarded by the feel of her body relaxing into his own. He didn't care who she had been or who with back then. He wanted the woman she was now, the one he had dreamt of kissing and touching and loving like this for far too many restless nights to count. After tonight, she was going to be all his. That was the only thing that needed to matter. Slowly, Jake released her lips and then brushed his face into the side of her neck, breathing her in.

"Then it will be my pleasure..." Heather felt her breath catch as the deep silky timbre of his voice warmed the side of her neck and every other piece of her. "…to show you around the neighborhood."

A carnal shiver of pleasure coursed down through her body and drowned out her lingering worries. Any embarrassment or hesitation was soothed away with his lips as they searched out her lips once more. And confidence built in her, along with her own need, as his touches became searching.

Jake felt her hands begin to take a similar course as his, the tips of her fingers trailing under the hem of his shirt, searching out skin. His stomach muscles jumped at the contact and he let out a small growl as he pulled back from her. Before she could question him, he stripped off the barrier of his shirt, tossing it somewhere in the room and quickly captured her lips once more. Smoothly, his hands fell to her waist and drifted to the belt of her robe.

Heathers eyes flew open and met Jakes as they pulled apart. She felt the release of the knot against her middle and then cool air caress the overheated skin of her stomach and thighs. Her knees nearly buckled when his hands slid past the draping fabric and drifted over the soft flesh of her waist, trailing upward.

He felt her shudder and watched her close her eyes as his hands traveled up the curve of her sides. He ghosted the pads of his thumbs just under the soft skin of her breasts still hidden by the flannel of her robe.

"Jake…" Her body shook in his steady hands. She opened her eyes to him and became entrances by his lust filled gaze. There was no mystery to how much this man wanted her. The need in his eyes took all her doubt away.

Heather stepped back from him and with all the newly found nerve she could muster, brought her unsteady hands to the lapel of her robe, eyes holding his. She didn't want this moment to just happen to her, she wanted to participate. She was going to give herself to this moment, as much as she was to Jake. So breathing in deep, she pulled the robe from her shoulders and let gravity take it to the floor.

If Heather felt like she had stopped breathing right then, Jake knew he had. Watching her reveal herself to him felt a million times better than if it was his hands that had done the job. _'My brave beautiful girl—no—woman.' _

Eyes glittering black in the dimming light, Jake took her in with his eyes and then with his hand, trailing his fingers down the side of her neck, along her collar bone and then between her breasts. How many times had he wondered how far that blush fell? A gentle smile caressed his lips.

"God, you're perfect." He breathed.

Heather let out a nervous laugh, and before she could speak, her smile was swallowed up once again by Jakes lips. His kisses quickly spread over the newly revealed bits of her body with abandon.

**MRO-MRO-MRO-MRO-MRO-MRO-MRO-MRO-MRO-MRO-MRO-MRO-MRO**

"Ah, Jake…" Heather cried out when the feel of his firm lips descended upon one of her supple mounds and drew in the pink flesh with a teasing tongue.

He felt electric pulse down his spine and further tighten the confines of his jeans to unbearable heights when her hands raced up into his dark tresses and she called out his name. A cocky grin flit across his lips while he lifted from her, only to descend upon the next peek, lavishing it with the same amount of intensity. _'She tastes __**so**__ damn good.'_

In no time, Heather felt the back of her legs brush the edge of her mattress and her body began to tremble again at the realization of what was next. Yes, she wanted this. _'Oh Lord, yes.' _ But she'd never felt like this before or this much all at once, and it was turning her into a shaking pile of nerves again. Maybe she wasn't technically a virgin anymore, but tonight very well felt like her first time. This man did that for her.

Jakes loving assault on Heathers body had only intensified after the little gasp she let out between their lips, when her legs hit the edge of the bed. Still kissing her to breathless, he slid a strong hand down the small of her back and pushed it under the cotton of her last stitch of cloths, taking in a handful of her firm backside and squeezed.

He suddenly stopped when he finally felt the intense shaking of her body against him. It had become strong enough to pull him from his lust induced haze. _ 'Damn it, Jake. Take it down a notch. You're pushing and she's new...'_ It hadn't been hard for him to loose control when the woman he loved more than the entire world was pressed up against him and nearly naked.

Jake pulled her to his chest and felt her arms tighten around him. "I gotcha." He whispered over her forehead and kissed her temple.

"I know." She smiled against him, catching her breath. She had no doubt. "Is the neighborhood always this exciting?" Heather enjoyed the deep laugh that vibrated from his chest and looked up into his eyes, before he took her into another kiss.

The kiss was slower this time, more tender than intense. And when Jake touched her, she still felt her body shake, but she no longer felt paralyzed. She had been consumed by his passion and now she was being caressed by his love as he carefully led them to the comfort of her bedding.

Jake smiled into their kiss when her small hand found its way under the back waistband of his jeans. As they lay side by side, he was giving her the chance to explore him at her own pace. It was beginning to feel like torture on his highly aroused senses each time she found another spot to kiss or caress, but it was worth feeling her confidence grow through her impassioned kisses and emboldened hands. But when she began to move her hips into him—that was just too much for a man to sit back and take.

Heather gasped into their kiss, when she felt his hand leave the curve of her breast and slide down her body to lightly cup her intimately.

Jake leaned back from her and found her eyes closed in pleasure as her legs automatically widened for him. He bent back down to kiss her while kneading the cotton covered flesh, enjoying the low moan that emanated from his lover.

Heathers eyes snapped open at the feel of his finger breaching the barrier of her panties and begin to swirl in the tight curls underneath. She found him watching her watch him, his eyes smoldering under half lids. It felt like the most erotic, intimate thing.

"Oh, God!" She closed her eyes and her hand came down upon the cords of his forearm, when he began to stroke her, sending little shocks through her body. "Jake…" she cried out when his fingers sunk home.

"Open your eyes." His voice rough and husky as she pushed into his hand. _'God this could finish me.'_

Heather obeyed, but Jakes actions to please her were making it hard to even concentrate, let alone meet his lustful drunk gaze. After tonight, she would never be able to look in those eyes again and not think of this moment.

God, he loved this. He could watch what this did to her all night long. But with each small cry that fell from her soft lips and the way her body arched into his touch—he wasn't sure if the fly of his jeans could continue handling the strain.

Jake captured her lips once more in a full bodied kiss, continuing his pace against her till he felt her soft whimpers turn into a cry between their lips and her hips came off the bed. _'Fuck that was amazing.'_ He thought while watching her glistening body tremble beside him.

Heather still felt little pulses of energy zap all the way to the bottom of her foot and back to her center, making her legs twitch uncontrollably. She tried to slow her breathing, but found it damn near impossible. _'What did he do to me?'_ A deep chuckle escaped her throat as she brushed away an emerging tear.

Jakes brows raised under his long bangs, watching her and placed his hand upon her stomach. "You okay?" His lips turned into an unsure smile.

Heather looked up to him, flushed and swept away. "I have never—that's never happened **with** someone."

Jake understood her meaning and felt a little flushed himself. A ridiculously large smile curled his lips. "Glad I could be of service."

Heather broke out into another bout of giggles.

Jake gently kissed her and rose from the bed, unbuttoning the fly of his jeans. Heather propped up on her elbow and realized the fantasy unfolding or unbuttoning before her. She ignored that it wasn't a towel dropping and enjoyed that it wasn't a dream, and that this beautiful man before her was real and hers as she watched him latch onto his belt loops and pull his jeans to her bedroom floor.

Jake grinned with out modesty at her appreciative stare when he sprung from the confines of his cloths. He was comfortable in his skin, always had been. But to have her look at him that way—he felt like an Adonis.

Heather stemmed her gawking and looked up to meet his cocky grin. _'My god he's sexy and he knows it.'_

Jake kneeled on the edge of the bed and latched his long fingers into the sides of her last stitch of cloths, placing small reverent kisses on each of her hip bones, before pulling down. Moving back up her body, he smoothed his hands up the soft skin of her inner legs, knowing he couldn't resist what he was about to do to her next.

Startled he hadn't come the rest of the way up her body, Heather looked down the curves and plains of herself and found deep smoldering eyes half obscured by dark brows and bangs, and full lips poised just over her now quivering center. "Jake!" she cried, digging her hands into the sheets, when he quickly made contact with his lips. He lingered over her, taking her in. "OH, SHIT!" she screamed, now burying her hands into his hair.

Jake let out a deep growl from the pit of his chest, the sound of her nearly finishing him. _'That's it! I need her now!'_

Jake quickly rose up over her body and caught Heather in a hungry kiss that she returned with fervor. She pulled him to her and cradled his body with her own, clutching onto him with all her might. The feel of skin upon skin pulling sounds of pleasure from both of them as Jake leaned them to their sides and slid her thigh smoothly up his hip.

Jake pulled from their kiss, massaging the back of her head with his splayed palm. When her wide blue eyes opened to his loving stare, he began to push against her warmth. Her body cautiously flinched against him and he saw a brief flicker of discomfort cross her face from the foreign feel of him between her legs. Quickly he took her into another deep distracting kiss, before pushing firmly against her once more filling her, full and complete.

'_Oh God! Oh God! Oh God! This feels so—this is so…!' _"Ahhh, Jake!" Heather cried out when he released her lips to let out his own sounds of pleasure.

"Heather…" Jake moaned into her shoulder as he began an aching pace inside of her; each push into her, pulling pleasure from them both. He only prayed he could last this first time. Something about her made him feel like a randy teenager again. Before now, just brushing against her at the garage would have made him walk slightly crooked to the back office. But now? How she sounded, how she taste, how it felt to be buried deep inside—God, he was surprised he had lasted this long.

Jake captured her lips once more in a full bodied kiss. Her body had begun to meet his in this dance, stroke for stroke. _'My Heather, always the fast learner'_ his inner voice strangled out as he trailed his lips to her neck and bit down hard on his control.

Heather buried her face fiercely into Jakes shoulder, the feel of her body quickly coming apart in her lovers arms almost too much for her to take. "Jake, please…" she cried into the muscle of his shoulder, as the coiled up pleasure in her began to release in waves. "Love you Jake…"

The sound of her calling out to him during her release easily brought his own. "Heather…" her name drew out of him with a fierce moan as their bodies clumsily slowed against one another, both still straining under some sort of orgasm induced auto pilot. When sense finally flowed back into him, Jake pulled her trembling body in tight and buried his face into the side of her neck, taking in unsteady breaths. If he had been able to form words for her, to tell her what she meant to him—how he felt in this small window of time—he would have found his vocabulary sorely lacking. Words had never seemed enough to express how much she made him feel. But tonight—this act of love—came so perfectly close.

Heathers hands slid out from the crushing grasp he had around her body and slowly crept up into his hair. Still joined with her lover, she drew her shaking legs up around his sides, cradling his spent body protectively against her own. She felt overwhelmed, she felt high, and above all she felt loved by the man whose heart now beat like a drum against her own. She felt home.

Under the dimming evening light and surrounded by the others embrace, one of the lovers began to release silent unexpected tears, while the other continued to shake from the inside out. Both were damned certain this was happening again tonight and very, very soon.

**MRO-MRO-MRO-MRO-MRO-MRO-MRO-MRO-MRO-MRO-MRO-MRO-MRO**

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Shortly after a more leisurely second round, Jake found his pants and shirt, and then tossed Heather her robe. "Come on, let's go see some stars." his voice warm.

Heather smiled brightly, catching her robe, watching Jake pull up his pants. "I don't know, Jake. I just saw a pretty nice moon." She wiggled her brows when he turned to her.

"What happened to my blushing school teacher?" Jake tossed the pillow on the edge of the bed at her.

"She became your dirty little Grease Monkey." Heather teased and then squealed when Jake jumped back on the bed and began to grab her beneath the sheets. "No fair, that tickles…"

"Then get dressed." He ordered, with a grin. That dirty little Grease Monkey line was making his jeans a confining fit. _'This woman…'_

With a stop in his room for a sleeping bag, blanket and his gun—the protector in him feeling even more charged after tonight—they were out the back door and under the night sky. Heather spread out the sleeping bag and blanket between the garden and the path to the windmill, while Jake flipped off the yard light, exposing them to the wondrous light show that was the heavens.

Jake sprawled out on the sleeping bag and Heather soon followed with the quilt, using his upper arm and chest as her pillow. They soon found their comfortable silence.

It was a beautiful night for stars, beautiful night for many things. Jake smiled up into the night sky. Right there, right then, with the world around them still one big mess, Jake felt his own troubles, own burdens drift off and become as far away as the Milky Way above them. This feeling could not, and he was damn sure, would not last for him. But he'd take it while it was his to have.

"Wow." Jake heard Heather whisper at his side.

"Yea, the stars sure are something tonight…" Jake rubbed his hands absentmindedly up and down her arm on his chest. He turned his head and found her watching him.

"I was meaning you, us—tonight." Heather breathed, her eyes twinkling in the starlight. She'd been watching him for a little while now. She had always loved his face and was enjoying the chance to just watch him this way, peaceful and at ease. He was a handsome man, that was certain, but it was something more. It was the way his large expressionate eyes could make that face seem stern and strong one moment and then heartbreakingly tender the next, as if his soul was a tangible thing to be seen. It's what caught her heart that night they first met and stole it.

Jake rolled to his side facing her and traced his hand across her face. How he had lived as long as he did without her, he did not know. He never wanted to be without her again. Jake breathed in deep and said the first thing that came to his heart…

"Marry me." His words a ruff whisper.

"Jake?" Heather felt her heart thump in surprise as she grew still beside him. _'He asked me what?'_

"Please don't say…" Jake squeezed his eyes tight and then opened them to her again. He was realizing too late just how vulnerable he had left his heart when he felt it stop, as she continued to stare at him in stunned silence. "I know tonight just happened, but…" his words tripped out. He knew that someday he was going to ask her to be his wife, but now? Like this? So soon? But what of 'someday'? What if they didn't have that kind of time in this new uncertain world…? Jake's chest had become a tight knot. '_Life is just too damned short and I've wasted enough of it.'_

"So the sex was really good, then?" Heather interrupted, eking out her only defense against her nerves. She felt her eyes tearing as she began to breath again.

A shaky chuckle burst from his chest as he reached for her hand. "We were lovers before tonight, you know that." Heather nodded at his true words.

"Then yes, Jake. Yes." her answer shining in her eyes. There was no doubt, no fear. She could never be anyone else's but his, 'yes' was the only logical answer to give.

"Yes!" Jake repeated, his eyes round as saucers. "Yes?" The most crooked smile began to spread over his features and light his eyes. "YES!" Jake got up as quick as his leg let him, taking Heather with him to her feet. Lifting her up, he gave her a half spin across the grass and nearly ended up in the vegetable patch. Joy and love filling their hearts equally, they laughed like loons into the night.

"Jake—the neighbors…" He kissed her soundly before she could finish and lowered her to the ground. Quickly they sank back down to the sleeping bag and earth, Heather now across his chest. Their heads and hearts still soaring amongst the heavens, they continued a kiss that promised a round three under the stars.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Sunday morning began early at the Green house, or at least it did for Gail. Morning bird by nature, she could come home after midnight from the clinic and be up by five to go back to work. But on Sundays she liked having a little bit of time to herself before church, which usually included coffee or tea, toast or something like it and the porch swing when the weather was good. And this morning the weather was great.

After her quiet time came the task of waking Heather. _'Lord that child is not a morning person.'_ And if she was lucky and Jake wasn't working, she wrangle him for church too. This morning would have been no different, except for the wrangling part.

Gail stepped into her upstairs hall and looked at the only occupied room and smiled. "Kids, time for breakfast. Get it while it's hot." She grinned, hearing muffled sounds and a small laugh, then turned back down the stairs to patiently wait.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

The Greens had received visitors since Gail's wake-up call. Jimmy had come by with the promised work schedules for Jake and had Stanley along for the ride. The three were sharing what was left of the family's recent ration of coffee when Jake stiffly walked into the kitchen.

"Morning, Jake." Jimmy smiled over his coffee cup. "Got ya those schedules."

Jake nodded his head and walked over to his mother, excepting the offered cup of coffee and kiss on the cheek. He hadn't noticed his mothers smile and sat down across the table from Stanley.

"Leg bugging you this morning?" Stanley baited. "Getting old, Sheriff."

Jake gave him a quick glare over his coffee cup, shifting a bit under the table. The present ache in his healing leg wasn't age; it was overuse that left him limping a little extra this morning. A grin tugged at his lips. "So what are you doing here?"

Stanley slumped a little in his chair and put down his coffee cup. "Mimi stranded me downtown when she took the truck for some 'errands'." Stanley raised his fingers in a quoting motion. "Jimmy was coming this way, so…"

"You're coming to church with us." Gail finished, not turning from the stove.

Jake smirked into his coffee cup. "Do you guys enjoy fighting every other Sunday, Stanley?"

Stanley smiled at his friend and leaned back in the kitchen chair. "Like making up every other night."

Jake tossed a spoon at Stanley and Gail smacked him on the back of the head. "Don't be breaking my chairs, Stanley!" she scolded.

"Sorry Mrs. G." he quickly put the chair back on all fours.

Jimmy chuckled at Stanley, while Jake took another long drink of his coffee and ended up meeting his mother's eyes across the kitchen. This time he noticed the smile and chose to ignore it. At least till he could talk to Heather. _'Why did I think she wouldn't know?'_

Stanley caught Gail's knowing stare at her son and quirked his brow at Jake.

"So how was your shift, Jimmy?" Jake was now trying to ignore Stanley. _'Crap!'_

"Nothing to write home about. Had a lot of time to start some of these schedules for you. Didn't put your name in just yet…" Jimmy cautiously looked to Gail. "I know we don't get you back till you're cleared."

Gail smiled sweetly at Jimmy and then to her son. "I think Jericho's Sheriff is on the road to recovery sooner than we thought."

Jake rolled his eyes and before Stanley could make comment, the sound of Heathers slippers swooshed across the kitchen floor.

"Good morning, Honey." Gail called out brightly. Heather returned the smile, but couldn't quite meet the older woman's eyes. The blush on the young woman's face confirmed everything Gail needed to know.

Heather quickly smiled at Jimmy and then at Stanley. "Jimmy, Stanley." But when she caught Jakes small smile across the kitchen, she glowed a lovely shade of pink.

Stanley had been watching his friend since Heather walked into the room. The sickening sweet warmth in his buddy's eyes topped off with his girl's infamous blush was enough to confirm his suspicions.

"You two shacked up!" Stanley proudly proclaimed. "Finally!"

Jimmy spat his coffee across the table towards Jake. "Jesus—Stanley!" Jake yelled while jumping from the spray. Gail was trying her damnedest not to start laughing out loud and Heather was now a deep shade of crimson and wishing she could crawl into a dark corner of the house. The entire time Stanley sat smiling with his coffee, pleasantly pleased with his stellar deduction skills.

Gail finally shook her head and tossed a startled and highly uncomfortable Jimmy a tea towel to clean up the mess. It appeared that this was not normal breakfast conversation in the Taylor household. She smiled brightly at her son, who was looking concernedly at a very embarrassed Heather. Gail gently reached out and placed a soothing hand upon the young woman's shoulder. "I've always wanted you two to be happy. I may be getting on in years, but I'm a romantic at heart." Gail was glad to see Heather was able to meet her eyes now. She hoped the girl understood just how much she gave blessing to any happiness she and her son could find. "And we are all adults here." Gail arched a brow at Stanley. "Well, most of us. Shame on you Stanley."

"Just call em like I see em." Stanley took a victorious swig of his coffee.

"You're an old gossip bitty." Gail scolded. "What does Mimi do with you?" For his own safety, Stanley let that question hang as he drank from his cup.

"Well, I have another bit of gossip to spread around Mom." Jake moved from the kitchen table and stood at Heathers side and took her hand. "I asked Heather to marry me."

Another spray of precious coffee went across the table when it was Stanley's turn to choke. All smiles, Jimmy quietly passed him the towel while beaming up at the Green's and Heather.

"Damn, Jake. I said take a leap…" Stanley got out between gasps.

Gail ignored the commotion in her kitchen and just kept staring at her son and Heather with wide eyes.

"Mom? You okay there, Mom?" Jake looked a little worried when his mother had not responded, let alone blink.

"Gail?" Heather looked to Jake in question.

Gail snapped out of her trance and then looked to her son and then to the woman she loved like a daughter, remembering what she had just told herself about the two of them finding happiness. A large teary smile filled the Green matriarchs face as she reached for her son and future daughter-in-law. "I am **so** proud…"

**TBC.**

_This is the lovely Billy Joel song, Jake played on the piano. I took a stretch with his character, but the actor's hands just screamed piano to me and this song just seemed so fitting for Jakes feelings for Heather in this story._

_She's Got a Way_

_She's got a way about her  
I don't know what it is  
But I know that I can't live without her  
She s got a way of pleasin'  
I don't know what it is  
But there doesn't have to be a reason anyway  
She's got a smile that heals me  
I don't know why it is  
But I have to laugh when she reveals me  
She's got a way of talkin'  
I don't know why it is  
But it lifts me up when we are walkin' anywhere_

She comes to me when I'm feelin' down  
Inspires me without a sound She touches me  
and I get turned around  
She's got a way of showin'  
How I make her feel  
And I find the strength to keep on goin'  
She's got a light around her  
And ev'rywhere she goes  
A million dreams of love surround her  
ev'rywhere

She comes to me when I'm feelin' down  
Inspires me without a sound  
She touches me and I get turned around

She's got a smile that heals me  
I don't know why it is  
But I have to laugh when she reveals me  
She's got a way about her  
I don't know what it is  
But I know that I can't live without her anyway


	25. Chapter 25

**Disclaimer:** Yep, don't own Jericho or its character's—wish I did right about now—but the story line is mine along with the words I give them.

**Authors Note:** I have put a lot of thought into how I should end the Chapters Series. I was just going to focus on the J/H relationship and Jake's psychological baggage and I think I've accomplished that. But I some how feel cheated that I didn't deal with the Hawkins/Bomb situation, sooooooooo I think I'm gonna try and tackle it. At least what of the second season fits into my AU rendition of Jericho. When I watched the last episode 2.5, I realized I'd gotten rid of a lot of bad by letting Jake kill Constantino in my universe. So I'd like to condense the seven episodes of the second season after the **season** finale and put them into two or three chapters in my world, with my characters as they are. Some of the character behaviors and underutilization of some characters on Jericho have left me a bit saddened. So this turns out not to be good-bye, but a see you later. Enjoy my season cliffhanger.

I think it could have done with a good editing, but I just wanted to get it out there. And it is a long one, but I didn't have the heart to cut it in two. As promised I have a couple surprises and I've drug a little of Season 2 into the story to mesh my AU with the shows for future chapters. Thank you so much for your continued readership and reviews. I'm glad you've enjoyed this version of Jericho and continue to do so in the shortened storyline ahead.

**Warning**: Language, adult situations, along with grammar and spelling gone wild. AAAND a cliffy.

**Chapter 22: Dad**

by Ann Pendragon

"Jake…" Eric called after the hurricane that sliced its way through the crowd of deputies and government workers in the Sheriffs office and into the main hall.

Nearly two months had passed since Jericho's Sheriff returned to active duty and he was back to moving like lighting, even with the minor limp that lingered in his step when it rained. Some would even say that their Sheriff and his step seemed significantly lighter most days—with his own upcoming nuptials fast approaching—but today was proving not to be most days.

Eric gave an apologetic nod to the Major at his side and took off at a jog after his non-compliant brother. "Jake! Damn it, Jake…!"

Sheriff Green stopped and waited for his brother to catch up with him in the Town Halls front entry, eyes bolted to some spot out in front of him.

"We need to work with them Jake…"

"But not work** for** them. This is our town and as long as I have this badge, I am the law here. I don't need the military holding my hand with every decision I make—asking permission to do my job…

"It's not going to be like that Jake." Eric pleaded. _'Damn it to hell!'_ He'd told Gray this morning it was a mistake telling Jake short notice about his new work situation. "It's only office space and an agreement to …" Eric stopped when his brother finally turned his piercing gaze on him.

"If you're asking me to be the 'go to boy' for the military…

"I'm asking for you to just sit down and talk to the Major. I think he wants to help us, not run us. And I'll deal with Perkins…" Eric continued to hold his brothers eyes and felt a small itch of relief when Jake gave a slight nod.

"Perkins…" Jake growled low. Eric found his head shake. Mr. Perkins, Jericho's now resident bureaucrat, was making it his mission, getting under both Green men's feet and deep under Jake's skin. It hadn't taken the government official too long to realize where most of Jericho's citizens turned for help and the big decisions made, so he'd made it a point of camping out on both Green's asses for the better part of a month along with the team of government workers he'd brought into town to settle Jericho into the new United States.

The latest topic of contention with the shrewd official and Jericho's citizenry was the influx of military and military contractor's in-town from the new encampment just outside the town limits, and how a select few of those men were using the town's resources. Namely Baileys and some of the female citizens of Jericho…

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

"_Jericho will not be the militaries sin city…" Eric firmly stated to the defensive bureaucrat._

"_Our fighting men and woman sacrifice a great deal for our country and its citizens, it is only expected that we do our part to help relieve some of those hard working fighting men and woman's burdens by giving them a little R&R…"_

"_By letting them use Jericho as a watering hole they can tear up and whore house they can use when the itch hits them?" Jake had finally interrupted from the back of the office, where he was keeping silent watch. _

_Mr. Perkins took off his glasses, polishing them with his handkerchief, not making eye contact with the young Sheriff. "Blunt as always, Sheriff Green. I feel that is a crudely inaccurate misrepresentation for what I'm going for here." _

"_I am being perfectly accurate, Mr. Perkins." Jake walked further into the office, making the larger man stop work on his glasses and abruptly take notice. "But yes, you are right. This situation is crude." Jake's eyes bore a little deeper into the suit before him. _

_Jake had spent the better part of last week breaking up fights at Baileys between the locals and the newcomers. It was difficult to say the least, dealing with the soldiers, let alone his fellow towns' folk. The soldiers didn't pay the same respect to the star on his belt or his authority. "I will not overlook the depravity happing in my backyard. This is my home and my people and if any of your people come into this town with anything less than pure intentions, I will hold them to the full letter of the law. Are we clear?"_

_Reginald Perkins sternly eyed the increasingly difficult challenge that now stood before him. It was past time to get a leash attached to the maverick lawman. Long past due. "Crystal, Sheriff. Crystal." _

_ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo_

Eric had experience dealing with government politics and those who thrive in it, but Jake… Jake first reaction to this new and very close working relationship with the military was to find Perkins and their spineless Mayor and strangle them both. But he had promised his fiancé and his brother to keep the bureaucrat body count down to a monthly minimum. He didn't have to make such promises to his mother; she was of the same mind.

And Jake's first assumption, when he was told about Major Beck, was Perkins had finally brought reinforcements to try and assert control over his department. He's sensed this coming after the debate over Baileys and knew that this new working relationship with the military was the equivalent to a muzzle on his authority. _'When hell freezes over.'_

Jake placed his hand to his mouth and drew it to his chin. A few moments after stilling his feet, Jake felt his head come back on strait. Having the Major here wasn't the battle to fight and besides… _'Friends close, enemies closer…_' Jake looked to the Major just down the hall out of ear shot and nodded his head. "Give him the office beside the Sheriff Department, not one of the ones in it. I want him close, but not in my lap."

"He might not be the enemy Jake?"

"Then it will be even easier to see my new friend when I need his help." Jakes eyes narrowed at the man down the hall. "Do you think Dad would have imagined this?" Jake wasn't sure why he asked right then, but he'd been thinking of their father a lot lately.

"The 'new' United States…?" Eric began.

"No. I was meaning the Green boys tag team." Jake gave his brother a slight grin. He and Eric's partnership had been growing steadily since the Constantino situation, now two month ago. No matter how different both men were, or how they argued, knowing they had the others back had been a priceless resource and reassurance to both men.

"Proud—maybe a little surprised—but proud." Eric grinned, while the other man looked to his shoes.

"Sheriff—Sheriff Green!"

Jakes head shot up to see one of his deputies bolting out the Sheriffs office and down the hall, nearly colliding with the still present Major Beck.

"What is it Sara?" Jake barked to the young woman on her approach.

"Col. Hammond…" At the sound of his superior's name, Major Beck jogged down the hall to follow. "Col Hammond sent word through our northern boarder post. His men had a run in with some unfriendlies out by White Hedge Pass. Killed most of the unfriendlies, but they got half his men."

"Estimated time of arrival?" The Major finally broke in. The young deputy looked between her Sheriff and the outsider. Jake nodded.

"Should be getting into town in maybe five now. Their going strait to the clinic with the injured. The Colonel is one of them."

Jake turned to his brother quickly, his mind back on autopilot. "I want you to call Mom, tell her what's coming if they don't already know. I think Kenchy should still be at the clinic. They know the drill." Eric nodded his head in understanding before leaving the hall to carry out his brother's orders. Skirmishes had continued to crop up between the military and a few of the die hard crews who still raided travelers and small homesteads in the territory. Jericho's clinic had become an oasis of sorts, as was the town and the military counterpart camped outside its boarder, for those who fell under attack or who needed a safe place to stay. There was some perks to having the military and their supplies so close... "And tell Gray." Jake yelled out as an afterthought, after Eric's retreating form, getting a waved hand.

"They also got a prisoner, Sheriff." The deputy quickly added, still at her boss's side.

"Then get Jimmy and Tommy down to the clinic." Jake ordered as he began to move toward the front door, automatically checking his side arm. "I'm heading their right now."

"I'm coming with you." Major Beck barked with authority. Jake quickly met the other mans eyes with a steady glower. He didn't have the time to argue, nor hold a grudge against a man he had yet to truly know. Jake merely nodded his head at the officer before continuing to the steps and his car.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

"So you **are** the guy?" They had been speeding down Main Street in the Roadrunner less than a minute, and half way to the clinic, when the Major ended his studied silence.

"What guy? What are you talking about?" Jake gave a humorous smirk, his eyes still on the quickly passing road.

The Major eyed the gruff lawman as he drove, with clinical interest. His superior had pointed out Mr. Green a couple of month's previous, back at that first sit down with Jericho and its neighbor, New Bern. He'd watched the dark looking young mans quiet handling of his Mayor that evening, he'd also seen the fist throwing at the end of the meeting, between the then Mayor of New Bern and Green. Beck had not been immediately impressed, but he made the young man required reading per Hoffman's urgings. _'Jericho is led by that young man. He is who you will contend with when we come to town.'_ So the Major did his homework.

What Beck had found in Greens records from before the bombs had left him even less enthused. Yes Green was tops at Riddle, came from a good family, but there was a history of juvenile and adult delinquency, a military drop out, questionable work with Military contractors abroad, along with questionable travels in South America. Green had been flagged a person of interest by the United States government for Christ sake and now he was being trusted to protect a town, one of the last 'civilized' towns left in Kansas? Stories of the old Wild West's Lawmen having gritty pasts were not lost on Beck in this town.

Hadn't New Bern's corrupted and now late ex-Mayor been his towns Sheriff? Beck had pondered. What made this Sheriff any better, or any less dangerous? As far as Beck could see on paper, Green's past appeared the most criminal of the men and the least likely to be a sufficient leader. But being the man he was, the one his father taught him to be, Antonio Beck, Jr. was a believer in mans actions, not their paperwork. More specifically, how a leader of men treated those under him. And what he had been able to see and hear during his few short stops in Jericho, was that Green was their hero. There wasn't even a question of the town's loyalty to the young Sheriff or a question of his loyalty to them.

Col. Hoffman had told him about the boarder skirmish between Jericho and New Bern. How Jericho had been outnumber and outgunned. He'd said _'…that town would have followed Green on a return trip to hell and ask how long do we stay…'_

So like the guy? Trust him with his life, his men's? The jury was still out, but it was certain Jake Green was 'the guy' and it was the Majors job to either build or burn a bridge with the man. Beck preferred construction…

"There's always that one guy." The Major continued. "The one who everyone in the room looks to when the shit hits the fan. The protector of his town. The guy that pulls asses out of fires and settles his towns disputes…" The Major was also aware of how the ex-Mayor of New Bern became the ex, and the continuing relationship between Sheriff Green and one Russell Williams of New Bern.

"And I'm that guy?" Jake eyed the clinic as it came up on them with steely reserve and pulled up behind the large military truck that now blocked the entrance. Jake didn't say another word to the Major as he jumped out of the car and headed around the back end of the truck. They were met by yells…

Gun pulled before he took another breath, Jake came around the side of the tailgate and was met by four other drawn weapons. Three of them military, trained on the fourth gun presently being pointed at their superior, Col. Hoffman's head. That fourth gun was none other than a very bloody and very beaten, Jonah Prowse.

"Jake—long time no see. Glad you could join the party." Jake's old boss spit some blood at the closest soldier and held onto the injured Colonel tighter, grinding the gun into the mans head. "Maybe you can help out here and tell our friends to back up or I'm gonna put a bullet in their bosses' skull…"

"Can't let you do that, Jonah." Jake stepped closer into the circle of men, gun drawn. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Beck, gun trained on Jonah's head.

"Orders, Colonel?" Major Beck yelled to his captive superior. Jonah strangled the badly injured colonel before he could speak. Beck stepped in closer, but Jake raised his hand to him.

"I know this man." Jake quickly whispered to the tensed Major. "Trust me…" The Major did not seem comforted by the Sheriffs request, but found his head nod at the determined glint in the lawman's eyes and stepped off to the side, gun still drawn on his target.

Out of the corner of his eye, Jake noticed the growing congregation of clinic staff and town folk gathering at the emergency entrance of the clinic. "Get those people out of the door way and back!" Jake yelled at the clinic staff as he stepped in the direction, gun still aimed.

"Still playing hero, Jake?" Jonah's brows rose under the blood from his head wound.

"Just doing my job, Jonah." When Jake moved his hip, Jonah caught the shine of tin on his old employee's belt.

"I'll be damned. So it is true." For a brief moment, Jonahs hold on his gun lessened and Jake took a step closer. "No further—Sheriff. I'm not letting them hang me at Liberty, so I won't hesitate to shoot a hole out of here." Jonah defiantly yelled to the soldiers and then met Jake's eyes. "Even if it's through you, Jake."

Jake lifted his finger from the trigger and raised his gun and hand up over his head before depositing the gun back in his holster. All the while he took another step forward. "So you prefer getting gunned down in the street like a dog, so your daughter and this town can watch. Is that how you want it…?"

"Don't you dare drag Emily into this. You no longer have the right to say her name." Jonah nodded towards the clinic, but Jake kept his eyes trained on his old friend.

"Whatever happened between me and Emily has nothing to do with right now, but what's between you and your daughter does." Hands out at his sided, Jake moved closer. Jonah remained silent, his gun still snug against the Colonels head.

"I can't let you shoot this man or anyone else in my town…" Jake moved another inch.

"Jake, I'm warning you…" Jonah growled. Jake stopped, now a shield between Jonah and the Colonel and the soldier's guns.

"And I don't want them trying to shoot you. Not here…" Jake motioned towards the clinic now behind him. "Not today."

"I'm touched." Jonah spat, now eyeing the man in front of him for what seemed like the first time. "Don't—Jake…" The young man stepped closer to him again, and again he did not pull the trigger.

"You've lived your life selfishly since the day we met…" Jake spoke, eyeing the other man.

"I was always selfish, Jake…" Prowse bitterly grinned.

"Then change that now. Think of Emily. Think of your family…"

Jonah's eyes left Jake and traveled to the crowd of people pushed back into the clinic. His daughter wasn't among them, but the girl who replaced her in Jake's life was. They'd met before today and strangely enough he hadn't felt any malice towards the girl. His daughter no longer did.

At present he was caught by the young woman's stare. She was holding onto Gail Green as the older woman clutched on to her tight, staring at her son with frightened intensity. But the young woman—she looked directly at Jonah. The girl was pleading with him, standing ram rod strait asking him with her eyes to leave Jake safe and unharmed. Jonah knew it. He knew people. And he once knew love.

Jonah shook his head and looked back at the young man he once thought of as a son. Jake Green, the Jake Green he'd known since he was a pup, was now the town hero and willing to risk loosing that girl, his family to save the life of strangers and temporarily save the life of one old con man? Jonah always figured the kid would be one of the good guys someday. Apples don't fall that far from their trees.

"I don't have a family, got nothing to loose." _'I pushed her away.'_ "Not like you, Jake."

Jake heard the weakness in Jonahs voice and took another inch closer. Jonah continued to shake his head, an odd smile played across his features. "You always had more balls than brains, kid." His rough voice ground out like gravel in a blender. _'And heart…'_ Jonah tossed the gun at Jake's feet and pushed away his hostage to the ground. Quickly he was subdued by the soldiers.

"Get these men to the clinic." Jake noticed the soldiers taking Jonah back to the truck. "The prisoner too." He shouted at the men. Angrily they continued to wrestle the now depleted Jonah into the back of the vehicle. Jake made for the truck. "You keep that prisoner in my town; he gets medical treatment while he's here!" Jake boomed, stopping the soldiers, before Jonah's head went under the truck tarp.

"Do as he says." Barked an authoritative voice behind Jake. "That's an order."

Jake watched the soldiers follow their order and waved his own deputies when he saw them come around the corner of the truck to follow into the clinic.

"Jimmy…" Jake caught the deputy as he passed. "Make sure the prisoner and our friends stay settled." Jimmy nodded and disappeared into the clinic.

Jake took in a deep steadying breath where he stood among the purposeful clinic workers and watched as they went to gather the injured from the other truck. Placing one hand upon his hip, he drug the other across his face, feeling the adrenaline leave his system. When he turned towards the clinic he found Major Beck watching him.

Beck had backed Jake up. The first pole of the bridge the Major wished to build between them was placed out for the Sheriff to secure into the ground. Jake nodded; the bridge had its first support. Beck nodded back to the Sheriff, as he helped lift the Colonel onto the gurney. The Major saw what he needed of this man. _'Yep, he's the guy…'_

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Jake hadn't noticed Heather in the commotion, and only his mother a short time later, when he entered the clinic to take Jonah to lock up. Heather was gone by then, taking Bonnie and a few more workers to the Richmond farm for the day, in Charlotte.

"Don't say anything to Jake…" Heather had asked her soon to be mother-in-law before leaving. The wedding was now only a week away.

The older woman nodded with a sad, concerned smile. She could see how the girl was shook up from what just happened, and for more reasons than one. "You're going to have to tell him…"

"I know." Heather looked down at her hands and messed with the sweater tied around her waist. Jake just had so much on his mind and such a large job to do; she didn't want to add to his worry, but… "He's coming out to the farm later this evening—well, if this doesn't change that." Heather nodded to the soldiers now in the clinic entryway. "He'd call if it did."

Gail took the girl into a warm, motherly hug, her own heart pounding heavy. "I'm so very happy for the both of you."

Heather pulled from the hug and gave a genuine smile. "I'll see you later."

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

It was past five when Jake made it out of town and down the back road to the Richmond farm_. 'Five to five, not a bad work day considering…'_ He wasn't going to be much use on the farm this evening, being the late hour, but he could at least see what needed to get finished when he came by tomorrow afternoon to help out his friends.

Jake squinted his eyes at the low sun, drumming his fingers in thought on the steering wheel as he drove. He'd had that sit down with Beck; or rather a stand around Col. Hoffman's bed after the officer was treated and sedated for his injuries. It was decided that the men who came with the Major would return to Liberty with what able soldiers left from Hoffman's men at tomorrow's early light, taking Jonah with them.

He still wasn't sold on the purpose of having Major Beck thrown so snuggly against his shoulder, nor did he trust the man, but he sensed something about him. Maybe his position in the military made him a keeper of hidden agendas, following orders like a good soldier, but the man himself seemed honest. Only time would tell.

Jake pulled into the Richmond's drive, dust trails following all the way to the house. He'd been on the property time and again to help his friends on the farm these past many months, but he hadn't been in the house since the day his father died. He knew the blood streaks left by he and his brothers hands had been wiped from the front door long ago. He knew the puddle of blood on the kitchen floor had been scowered and the old wood kitchen table sanded and painted clean. But the memory hadn't been so easily cleansed from his mind.

Jake stepped out of the Roadrunner and waved to Stanley and his workers coming in from the field to the pump house. One of Mimi's many house rules—rule no.12, dirty men get a cleaning before they enter the clean and pristine, family home.

"Heathers inside." Jake heard Mimi's voice from the side yard and grinned. So up the porch steps, Jake opened the front door, took a breath and walked inside to find his future wife. _'Wife.'_ Jake grinned. The thought alone warmed him.

In the front hall, he looked into the living room then turned to the sound of rattling metal against glass in the kitchen. He was met by the sight he'd expected to see when entering this home, not the one he was presently searching for.

Johnston Green lay dead and still bleeding on the hard surface of the Richmond's kitchen table. His blood no longer pumped from his system; gravity now did the job, covering the floor in a dark reflective puddle…

Jake closed his eyes and squeezed, waiting a moment to reopen them. When he did his father was still lying there, lifeless and broken. "Dad…" Jake whispered. In the blink of an eye Heathers form walked in front of the table and his deceased father's remains, taking the image away with her when she moved past. All that remained was a kitchen table filled with dirty mason jars and Jake's heart caught in his chest.

Jake shook grim thoughts away, before stepping over the kitchen threshold. Heather now stood before the kitchen window, working on something as it rattled in the sink, her elbow out like wings straining with exertion.

"Whatcha working on?" He noticed her jump a little when he moved up behind her. Gently, he wrapped his arms around her waste and rested his forehead on the back of her shoulder. This—this was what he was needing. Upon contact with her body he felt distanced from today's trials and sated once more. He took in a deep breath and felt his anxiousness dull down and his head feel less heavy.

"Trying to get this jar open to get to the pins." She tried to sound chipper when she answered. She felt his weight against her and sensed what Jake needed. She knew how his day had been, even if he did not know she had witnessed the most dramatic part of it. Heather turned from the sink to face him, wrapping her arms around him and squeezed as his arms smoothed up her back. This was what she was here for, to care for this man, to love him. To give him home.

He had scared her today. Put a chill strait down her spine. She'd seen Jake jump to action in the past, but not like today. She'd always been in the position of being somewhere else when Jake—well, when Jake was today's Jake. Maybe she had gotten a glimpse of it at Black Jack, but nothing like today.

Heather had told him the night after Bill and the other men's funeral, that she accepted him for that side of himself, the dangerous side. The kind of man who can not just sit still and let things happen. Now baptized by today's events, she had not wavered from that decision.

Maybe another woman would be angry, yell and cry out how stupid could he be to put their family at risk for Jonah Prose and a bunch of strangers in uniform. But Heather loved him for bravely standing up for what was right, for caring enough to risk his safety—his life—for his fellow man. She still felt scared, but she loved him and she trusted him. This was Jake. She couldn't—wouldn't change that, even if a little part of her hoped that what she was about to tell him might just do that, even if a small measure.

"Rough day?" She whispered against his shoulder.

Jake took a deep tired breath as he pulled from her comfort and wrapped his fingers over the brim of the sink. "You could say that." He looked out the window into the backyard. "I now have an official liaison between me and the Military, provided by one Mr. Reginald Perkins. And then Jonah Prowse was brought into town today by Col. Hoffman and what was left of his men after Jonah…" Jake trailed off and quirked his brow. Heathers curiosity would have kicked in by now and she hadn't said a thing. "You don't seem all that surprised?"

Heather stood beside him, nearly hip to hip at the sink. "I was in town when they brought Jonah in. I had an appointment at the clinic and had to pick up Bonnie and some of the guys."

Jake felt some of the stress of the day come back to him with a twinge. "I didn't know you were there…" he started, not sure how she felt or what she'd seen.

"You were doing your job, Jake." She looked up at him and gave him a tired but reassuring smile.

Jake soberly nodded his head to her in appreciation, his eyes tired and wide. In a way he was glad he hadn't known she was there. He would have worried about her safety and in doing so, his own. He could not have afforded thinking that way today. Jake looked down into the sink while they stood in momentary silence, then Jake picked up the dusty mason jar.

"Someone tell Emily?" Heather placed a hand at the small of Jakes back while he tried his hand at twisting off the rusted lid.

"Yeah, when I left town she was still with Jonah in lockup. Might be the last time she see's him before they take him to Fort Liberty in the morning."

Heather bowed her head, sad for her friend's situation and for Jake. She knew enough about the men's history to know they had once been friends. Jonah may have even been a father figure to Jake at one time.

Jake gave her a sideways grin when he felt her hand glide over his shoulder in comforting strokes. He placed his hand over hers and patted it before nodding out the window, ready for a change of subject.

"I see Mom came out." Gail Green was invited to dinner by Mimi later in the day, with the use of some privileged information. She was presently snapping beans with Bonnie out by hen house, tossing the stems to the chickens. "She come inside yet?" Jake hadn't been the only one to avoid this house and the memories in it.

"No, not yet. Promised she'd help with supper in a little bit, though." Heather wasn't aware of the significance of the table she stood near. She hadn't been there the day Johnston Green died.

Jake put more muscle into the jar in his hands, rumbling in frustration. "Why in the hell do you want in this thing? It's just needles and pins." Jake gave another twist to no avail.

Mimi said I could have whatever I found in the tractor shed. She'd been trying to get Stanley to clean it…" Heather smiled when Jake's frown turned into a smirk.

"Stanley doesn't clean anything except his plate." Jake gave another yank at the jar. "So what do you need all these needles and pins for? Mom gonna get you and the Grease Monkeys started on a quilting bee?" Jake threw Heather a patented crooked grin; she now found she couldn't quite return. "Heather?"

Heather breathed in deep and grabbed the hem of her shirt with a twist. "I was hoping to use those safety pins, Jake…" Jake quirked his brow at her, not understanding the reference, as he tried the jar once more. "…for diapers. I'm pregnant."

The jar dropped from Jakes stilled hands, smashing into bits in the sink. Reacting too late, one of the glass shards shot up and cut his hand.

"Jake!" Heather jumped back with a start, and then quickly grabbed a towel from the countertop when a thin line of blood emerged on Jake's hand. He didn't make a sound as she pressed the cloth to the cut and neither met the other eyes when she pulled it away. The silence stubbornly continued between them and Heather knew she had to end it.

"I know we haven't talked about it—this… I mean—I …" Heathers words clumsily trailed off, but had the desired effect needed when Jakes eyes raced up to meet hers.

"You—we?" Jake finally grasped a couple words to throw together. What do you say when you have no frame of reference for what your feeling right then. Surprise?—check. Wonder—love?—it was Heather, his Heather, so check. Fear…? It was fear that rang out the loudest in his heart and what took up residence in his gut. The fear in him yelled _'April…'_

"I thought it was stress." Heather rushed to explain, the moment—the pregnancy still felt like something happening to someone else, but telling Jake was making it feel more real. "I was really late, so I went to your mother at the clinic and then we saw the Doctor…"

"But we were careful?" Jake quickly interrupted. The day after their first night together, Jake had made it his mission to procure as much contraception he could find down at the clinic. Having a baby right now was not what either of them had planned. It had been difficult to get a large amount of those little silver packets, even with the now steady supplies coming into town. They were like gold to the reproductive population and it had been hell rationing them over the last couple of months for Jake and Heather, being that they were not only new, but very enthusiastic lovers. To satisfy that reality, the two had found other ways to fulfill one another's needs in order to stretch out their supply. Not that either complained. So careful? Yeah they were careful.

"But not that first night." Heather spoke softly. That first night had been natural, in every aspect of the word. "I guess you got great swimmers?"

Maybe he would have found that funny, or at least let it stoke his male pride, but he was just too damned scared still, to even move. Jake continued his silence, his hands at his sides. Not once had he touched her. It wasn't till she turned away from him; quickly wrapping her arms around herself as if she was cold, did he realize what his hesitancy had done and cursed himself for it. Quietly he stepped up to her and turned her to him, pulling her into his arms.

"You're having my baby." Jake closed his eyes, whispering into her hair.

"I am, Jake." Heather smiled into his shoulder, wiping a tear into the fabric of his shirt. She felt better—she always felt better in his arms, just a little more sure. And she needed that now. She needed him. Heather was petrified, happy, but petrified. She had every reason a woman should be scared to conceive and deliver times ten when you took into account the new world they lived in. But she had Jake; she had her new family and her friends. She was confident that everything was going to turn out fine. And she told herself that once Jake got over the initial shock, he would be too.

Heather did not know Jake was everything but fine, as she snuggled into his embrace. She could not see the deep frown that creased her lovers face and only felt the gentle hand that rubbed up and down the expanse of her back in soothing circles. "You're going to be a Dad!" She whispered happily into his ear.

Jakes eyes snapped open as he held her tighter to his heart. Feeling her against him, he hoped to keep the fear pushed away, if at least for her. And then his eyes fell upon the kitchen table behind them.

'_Dad…'_

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Supper at the Richmond's was filled with celebration and laughter. As it turned out, nearly everyone in the house knew of the pregnancy before Jake.

"I had to hurry up and invite your brother and Mary over tonight, so they could at least get the news first hand…" Mimi smiled over the table to Jake and Heather, and then winked at Eric and Mary at the other end.

"Yeah. You know small towns. By lunchtime tomorrow everyone will know the town Sheriff knocked up the town sweetheart before their wedding day." Stanley ducked a radish from his sister's side of the table, after Bonnie watched him speak to their guests. "Hey now, Your breaking Mimi Rule no. 4, food can't be used as weapons." He spoke and signed.

"Your being a jerk, Stanley." Bonnie signed as she smiled.

Jake shook his head at his friend as Heather chuckled, her blush making another guest appearance.

"Sweetheart, huh?" Mimi winked at Heather before she leveled her eyes to her husband. "And I'm not sweet enough to be a town sweetheart?" She pretend pouted as she held the bowl of potatoes from Stanley's grasp.

"Sweet enough that I won't be sharing you with the town." Stanley bent further over the table to snatch the potatoes in his wife's hands, kissing her before he returned to his seat.

Jake felt Heather squeeze his hand under the dining room table as she happily watched their friends display. They hadn't spoken more than a few sentences since Heather told Jake about the pregnancy, hadn't had the chance with all the hugging and shoulder slapping shortly after everyone made it into the house to start supper. Even now, Stanley was winding up for another expectant father joke, while Gail was pouring years of baby knowledge in between each bite Heather took of her supper.

"…and you will need to eat better, honey." The older woman chided, while doubling the green beans on Heathers plate. Between the three aunts discussing baby supplies, Gail continued to despair over Heathers eat and run mentality and even worse how the younger woman always managed to forget to eat while at work. Like Gail was any better. "And your hours at the garage will not do. Fred and Titus can deal with the day to day…" the other women at the table nodded in agreement while Gail continued.

Heather cringed with the mention of her domain—the garage—and the inevitability of lessening her involvement there. This was not going to be the last time this topic would become dinnertime conversation over the next several months. Heathers mind was already working at top speed behind the polite smile she graced her loved ones with, as she covertly planned alternatives in her working pattern at the garage. How could she be lead Grease Monkey without the grease?

Heathers hand tightened on Jakes when Gail started in about the weight of her ever present personal friend, the tool bag. Jake automatically squeezed her hand back this time and was met by Heather eyes. While Gail was answering one of Bonnie's questions, Heather took the moment to look at him. She smiled brightly at her future husband, before taking his hand from his knee and placing it on her stomach under the dinning room table, holding it there. They remained silent under the din of voices and clattering silverware on plates. She looked so beautiful, Jake thought. So happy, so sure. Jake felt his gut twist before he withdrew his hand.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Shortly after supper, Jake stepped out onto the Richmond's back porch to try and gain his bearings. _'Damn it!'_ He wanted to feel excited. He wanted to be happy. He wanted to be sure. He wanted to be sitting in his friends living room right now with his arm wrapped tight around Heather, laughing and celebrating along with their family and friends over rhubarb pie. But he could not. Because every time he thought of Heather being pregnant, he saw images of a dimly lit operation room at the clinic and blood…

Jake stepped up to the porch rail and squeezed the banister as he remembered his family huddled around April's bed; the tears in his parent's eyes, the anguish in his brothers face…

Jake scrubbed at his face and up through his hair, trying to cleanse his mind of his memories before his worst fears combined with them into nightmares, already knowing it was too late. He did not hear the screen door open.

"Hey big brother?"

Jake jerked his eyes from the darkening horizon and slid on a neutral face. "Hey little brother."

Towards the end of supper, Eric had noticed his brother's quick getaway from the table and Heather, knowing something was wrong. He kind of figured what it was that would make Jake uncomfortable beside the mother of his unborn child. It was what came to Eric's mind the second his mother announced the blessed news.

"She's not April, Jake." Eric watched his brothers shoulders dip under the direct acknowledgement of his fears. "She has better chances at a healthy pregnancy with the resources the military's been supplying to our clinic—more doctors. Our town's food supply has improved…" Jake continued to stand quietly at the porch rail, back turned. "And you're not me. You'll be there for her—for the baby…"

"What happened with April wasn't you're fault, Eric…" Jake finally turned to his brother.

"I should have been there for her…"

"There were a lot of things you should have done, but none of that caused April or the baby's death. You could have been with her and it still would have been the same." Jake argued.

"Damn it Jake!" Eric yelled in a low voice, trying not to get the attention of those in the house. "Do not make this about me right now…"

"You started this…" Just as the words fell out of Jakes lips, he could not help feel every bit the defensive twelve year old boy and got the incredulous stare from his brother to support the thought.

Both men fell against the porch rail and let out odd, mirthless chuckles at the turn in the conversation. Both were trying to comfort the other and were failing miserably in their task.

Jake looked over at his brother, quietly watching him before he broke the silence. There was something he needed to know. "Are you okay with this?"

Eric understood his brothers meaning, but it did not escape him the irony of Jake being the one to ask this right now, when it was he who seemed conflicted about Heathers pregnancy.

"I'm more than okay, Jake. I'm happy for both of you. I'm happy for mom—I mean—look at her…" Eric nodded to the house and Jake found a small smile come to his lips, thinking of the flurry of motherly love that now possessed their mother. "I think once the newness of this wears off, you're going to be happy too." Eric gave his brother a quiet smile before turning back to the porch rail.

Jake took in his brother's earnest words and felt relieved that this wasn't going to become one more thing between them. Even at their best, the Green boys were just too different not to have a space that separated who they were. Didn't mean they loved or respected the other any less.

Jake moved a little closer to his brother at the rail, turning his attention to the dusky sky they both now watched, and allowed the familiar quiet to fill the space between them.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Later that night, Jake, Heather and Gail pulled up to the family home after dropping off Eric and Mary. Heather had offered Eric Old Charlotte to drive home since he and Mary hitched a ride with Mimi to the farm, but the old pickup had decided to stall out before it left the Richmond's drive. It was just one more thing that night that needed fixed.

"I don't know about you kids, but this old lady is exhausted." Gail took her sons hand as he helped her out of the backseat. She smiled broadly at Heather as she came around the car and the two woman linked arms. "Need I remind you young lady of your need for sleep? If you're looking for late nights, you'll have plenty of them in seven months." Heather groaned and Gail laughed as both woman navigated to the front door behind Jake.

Once in side, Jake turned on a couple lights, taking in his surrounding out of habit, while the women relieved themselves of their coats.

"You okay?" Heather walked over to Jake as he bolted the door and smiled up at him. Jake was still oddly quiet and it was beginning to weigh on her. _'Talk to me, Jake. Tell me its going to be alright.' _

He quietly wrapped his arms around her once more tonight and squeezed her to his chest, the drum of his heart giving away whatever lie he was about to give. "I'm fine." He mentally cursed himself for saying his 'tell' to her. 'I'm fine' never meant anything but the opposite coming from him. "I think Mom is right, you should probably get some rest. It's been a long day." He spoke into the top of her hair. Lying to her was already knotting his stomach.

He felt Heather breath in deep before she spoke and pulled her from him before she got the chance to place another question.

"Jake…?"

"I'll be up in a few minutes. I just want to check the doors and get something to drink. I'll be up." He interrupted, kissing her forehead and letting her go. Jake held onto his not quite right smile while the bright women before him eyed him in disbelief.

'_Something is not fine._' Heathers insides screamed, but did not get to voice the concern when she felt Gail come up to their side.

"Bedtime, you two." Gail placed a firm hand on the young woman's back and nodded at her son.

"Yeah, Mom. I'll be up." Jake repeated to the both of them. Jake felt his mothers questioning stare and turned up the smile on his face for show, before kissing his mothers cheek. Quietly, he watched his mother steer Heather towards the steps, the worry on Heathers face now plane to see as she looked back at him.

Jake dropped his smile when their foot steps could be heard on the upstairs floorboards, and began his tour of the house, jiggling the locked windows as he moved into the kitchen. Once the back door was checked, he promptly fell into the nearest kitchen chair, placing his face in the palms of his hands…

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Jake wasn't sure if it had been minutes or hours that passed when his face rose from his hands, but he knew he was no longer where he'd once been, without opening his eyes. He breathed in deep and took in a lung full of the cool, wet air he knew he'd smell. Listening, he heard the lapping of water on wood and felt the rough hard surface of planks under his boot toe. He didn't have to see, to know where he was or who with when he finally did open his eyes.

"So how's that juggling act of yours going, Son?"

Jake smirked at the older mans words as they both stared out over the water. "Started using my left foot, so I followed your advice…" he now turned into Johnston Green's serene stare. He looked like the day he'd died, hunting jacket and fedora, with bright blue eyes full of energy and steel. At present those eyes also held mirth.

"And you went and tossed some of those balls into another pair of steady hands." Jake nodded his head, enjoying the satisfaction that graced his father's features. "She's a wonderful girl, son. You couldn't have found a better mate."

Jake cleared his throat; his eye's shined thinking of his next words. "She's having my baby, Dad. I'm going to be a father."

Johnston Green did not seem surprised by the news, only thoughtful as he placed his hand upon his son's shoulder and squeezed. "And you're terrified?"

Jake's eyes widened, stiffly nodding his head in affirmation. He wasn't sure if it was the older man's knowing assumption or the affirming touch of his fathers hand upon his shoulder that tightened his throat.

"I love her, Dad." Jake's voice no more than a whisper. "I can't loose her—or our child." Jake looked away and cleared his throat. "Less than a day and I already love that baby and we haven't even met."

Johnston Green smiled kindly, a light shown in his eyes as he watched his oldest son struggle with his fear and his heart. Even to have seen what he'd seen, it still marveled the elder Green to see just how far his son had come—how he had grown. "You're a good man, son" Proud awe deepened the older man's voice. "With a good heart."

Jake turned up and met his fathers clear blue eyes. "She is my heart." His words did not hesitate, his belief certain. "She makes me this man—a good man." Jake quieted as a low chuckle rose in the back of the elder Green's throat. He could not help but scowl at his father's response to his earnest words.

"I'm not laughing at the sentiment son. I felt the same about your mother all those years." Jake features lightened and Johnston continued. "The truth is Heather fell in love with you because you are a good man. She just saw it in you before you did. She's a smart girl. Got a lot of guts, too. I saw it in her the day she confronted you out in front of Ruthie's Market." Jake could not help but share his father's smile, at the memory.

"The ones who love us don't make us, son. They just bring out of us what is already there. Some of us just tend to bury the good stuff a little deeper." Johnston gently pointed a finger into his son's chest.

"Maybe in a way, others do help make us. The choice to have certain people in our lives…" Johnston took a step closer to the edge of the dock, taking off the fedora that sat upon his head, twisting it in his hands. "You've been doing good there son, real good. You've trusted your gut in that department, picked good people. You're going to need these people you've chosen in the coming days."

"Dad?" Jake wanted to question the sudden change in topic, but his father did not answer, only letting the silence trail out between them. Jake had a feeling that 'the departed' had a ring side seat to the workings of the world and his father had already given him too much of a heads up. Something held him from asking more.

"You know I hear you talking to me some nights, in sleep or in your prayers." Johnston broke the silence. "I know it's been a long hard road for you, son. I know there are a lot of things you wish you could have told me when I was still living. There are things I wanted to tell you, too."

"You told me you were proud of me." Jake clearly remembered that day.

"But I didn't say how much I loved you." Maybe Johnston hadn't said it because in his heart it went without saying. "And I wanted to thank you…"

"Thank me? Dad?" Jake watched his father lean against one of the poles that supported the dock and waited.

"It was that first night following the bombs." Johnston finally spoke. "All Hell had crawled in a hand basket and was set upon our town's doorstep—our country's. Night had fallen on the first day of the apocalypse and there I was standing amongst a riot of our friends and a neighbor at the gas pumps at Murthy's, loosing ground with our town and with my faith…" Johnston paused a moment to gather his thoughts and then continued. "…and then you came, honking that bus horn and yelling for help. I swear it-I thought the day had given me enough surprises, but there you were. My boy—my prodigal son—who had been just as lost and missing as those kids on that bus—bringing them on home to their families and safety, doing something that the rest of us had yet to do." Johnston looked over his shoulder briefly, giving his son a tired smile and then looked back to the water. "And you kept on doing after that night—crazy brave things—not giving a damn about your own safety and everything about your family's and your towns. Always having to be the first to jump into the fire…"

"I don't understand, Dad?"

"You saved my butt that first night, son. You humbled this old man and gave him back his faith, something he'd lost long before the bombs." Johnston turned back to his son and could still see the confusion there. "I saw you be something—someone I had given up hope of seeing." Johnston cleared his throat. "After you left us that first time, I thought we'd lost you. But I was wrong. I should never have given up my faith in you but I did." Johnston watched his son look away from him to find interest in the dock boards under their feet and continued.

"It's a hard thing when a man looses faith in something he cares about. It takes a piece of him. So that first night, not only did you bring back my faith in you, but in me." Johnston continued to watch his silent son. "You brought me hope, Jake. And everyday after, till the day I died, I carried that faith—that hope with me." Johnston smiled wistfully at his son. "So you see son, you helped bring a better man out of me."

"Dad…" Jake roughly whispered. "You're a better man than I'll ever be." Hearing his father admit these things was throwing him for a loop. The righteous and unwavering Johnston Green was never wrong or in need. Then again his father was only a man; something Jake was seeing him as for the first time.

"I was a stupid, stubborn man for letting my fear of being wrong get in the way of my relationship with my son. I pushed you away because I was afraid of being wrong and then you were gone."

"The shit I pulled. I wasn't any good…" Jake argued.

"But you were my child. Above all, you were my child." The older mans voice rose. "Do not let **your** fear push away the ones **you** love. You needed me back then and I pushed you away. Heather needs you now. That child will need you…"

"But what if I…"

"Screw it up?" Johnston smirked at his son before looking back out over the lake. "Hate to tell you, kiddo, but you probably will on occasion. No Dr. Spock baby book is going to make that any different. Which reminds me, throw your mothers out before she gives it to Heather?" The older man grinned to his still silent son then looked down at the hat he turned in his hands. "Having that child is just the tip of the iceberg, got plenty more to be scared of or wrong about, afterwards."

"Great, no worries." Jake groaned, placing his hands over his face and then away.

A deep bark of a laugh rose in Johnston Green's chest as he smiled at his son. "You know you'll get some stuff right, too? When you do it will make all the wrongs worth the gray hairs. I know that from my own personal experience." Jake looked up and gave his father a slight grin. "You'll do good, son. Might even get a little more right than your old man did."

Jake watched his father smile, and felt his mind spin trying to take in all that was said between them. He wanted to remember tonight, when his eyes opened from this dream. And then his heart grew heavy, knowing this moment must end. If his Dad could just be with him, not in this world of dreams and memories, but with him like he had once been. In that moment, he wished more than anything to take his father back over the great divide.

"I miss you, Dad."

Johnston reached out to his son's cheek; his eyes warmly watching the younger man swallow down emotion. The elder Green gladly acknowledged the man his son had become, but right then the father in him could only see the young boy he'd once been. He saw that naked honesty in son's soulful eyes and not the stubborn silence that took him in the teen years. He saw his son's limitless courage and heart, things that life's circumstances never took from Jake, only buried for a time to be found once more. It seemed to Johnston, that in some strange way his son had finally come full circle. Back to his family, back to himself, back to life. It's all he could have asked for.

"I'll always be with you, son." His words deep and warm. "Always."

Jake placed his hand over the one on his cheek and nodded his head. Words had left him once more, but his eyes said all there was needed to be expressed. _'I know, Dad. I love you.' _

"Now." Johnston stepped from his son and returned his hat to his head. "Your grandfather has gotten himself into a poker game with the fella's and I'm sure a fight isn't far off."

Jake smirked and nodded his head, wiping his wrist over his eyes. "Go throw some cold water on them, Dad." his voice rusty.

Johnston nodded his head back and smiled, before turning away and into the mist that settled at the other end of the dock. As he began to walk away, Jake could hear his father give a light laugh…

"E.J. still can't believe it's a girl. Four generation run of Green men and we get a girl." Jake cocked his head, not sure what he was hearing. "She'll be a tough little thing, smart like her mama. Gonna have to be, with the brothers she's going to get. What a pair those Green boys will be."

Jakes eyes grew wide, watching the last of his father's hat disappear into the mist and shadows. "Girl? Sons? Dad!"

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Jake shook awake, nearly falling out of the kitchen chair. Righting himself, he bolted up from his seat and stood in the quiet of his family kitchen, only the sound of his mothers ticking hall clock as company.

'_I'll be damned!'_

Jake quickly headed to the steps, turning off lights on the way. Up the stairs, two at a time, Jake quietly moved to the end of the upstairs hall and into the room he and Heather now shared.

She had not stirred when he opened the door, her breathing coming out even and slow in sleep. Her body was curled up towards the center of their bed; Jakes pillow wrapped in her arms and pulled against her, where he was suppose to be.

Jake lowered himself to his knees beside the bed and placed his hands upon the sheets as if to pray. He watched her for a moment and then let his eyes fall to the center of her body—their child.

"I promise you—I promise your mom—you will be loved." Jake whispered to his unborn child. "You will be loved and protected and you'll never be alone." Jake paused, thinking of his father's words to him tonight and felt understanding encompass his heart. "You'll be my little girl and I will always—always be there for you. I swear…" Jakes voice broke before lowering his head to his hands on the mattress.

"Little girl, huh?" Jake felt a hand in his hair and raised his dark eyes to meet sleepy blue. The present shine of tears in Heathers eyes, told him she had heard every word he'd said. Her hand reached for him and he held it.

"I'm sorry." He pleaded. "I was scared and I started to run…" Jake looked away in shame. "I just—I couldn't handle the thought of loosing you like we did April."

"Jake…" Heather knew something was weighing on him, but to know it was this… "I don't intend on going anywhere—me or this baby." Heather smiled, gripping his hand tight. "But I can't make guarantees, either." her voice weakened. It hurt her to see him this way, but she could only give him the truth.

Jake nodded his head lightly, taking her palm to his lips. "I know." He smoothed that hand between his two. "I know." He looked up and met her shining eyes.

"You know, I take that back. I can guarantee you this…" Heather sat up in bed and slid to the edge in front of him, placing her legs on either side of his kneeling form. She took his hands back in hers. "I guarantee that whatever time we have, I will love you…"

Overcome with the moment, Jake quickly wrapped his arms around her before she could finish, pulling her to him where he knelt between her flannel covered thighs. Heathers arms quickly circled his shoulders and pulled him to her chest. A moment passed between them before Jake pulled away. Hand through her hair he took his future wife into a long loving kiss, before leaning down to her stomach to push up the cotton of her tank top.

Heather felt her breath catch, feeling his lips upon the soft skin of her stomach. Drawing her hands in his hair, she watched her loving mates' actions in awe. _'I do love this man.'_

As if reading her mind, Jake looked up and met her half lidded stare. He gave her that smile, the one that never ceased to make her insides shake, while he splayed his long fingers over their unborn child's temporary home.

"Whatever will we do without the need for contraception these next long months?" Heather asked not so innocently and received a low groan from her lover.

"A lot." Jake got up from his knees to hover above her at the edge of the bed. "A whole hell of a lot."

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

"Shhhhhhhht" Broke the early morning silence. "Shhhhhhhht. Sheriff Green, this is Officer Taylor. Shhhhht. Jake this is Jimmy. Come in."

"Jake…?" A sleep laden voice spoke into Jakes chest.

"I know, I hear it." Jake answered, gruff and rusty. Sliding out from under his lover's warm body, his feet came down on the cool wood floor as he reached for the radio on his bedside table, lifting it from its base.

"It's Jake." The half asleep man creaked out groggily. "What's going on?" Jake rubbed at his aching thigh muscle as he yawned off radio. This wasn't the first late night-early morning call he'd received from the comfort of he and Heathers bed. He was hoping it didn't take him from it tonight.

"It's Jonah, Jake. He's escaped." So much for hoping.

"Escaped?" Jake stood from the bed, devoid of cloths. "How long?" Jake began to pace.

"I called the station forty-five minutes ago and everything was fine. When I came in at four I found the side door to the department picked, Tommy knocked out on the floor and Jonah gone. Someone helped him Jake…"

"Tommy okay?"

"Yeah, Jake. Minor concussion."

Jake moved through the dark, collecting his pants and shirt, radio still to his ear. "The Military…" Jake rustled his cloths back on his body.

"There coordinating a search as we speak. Beck was temporarily camped out in one of our back offices and heard the commotion when I was helping Tommy into the main office. He had one of his own men on guard duty tonight, but we haven't found him yet, just a blood trail that leads to the back parking lot."

"I'll be there in seven, Jimmy. We'll go from there." Jake's voice was steady now, the sleep in it gone.

"Understand. I'll tell the Major."

Jake placed the radio on the end of the bed to put on his socks, when he felt a hand upon his shoulder.

"You think it was one of Jonah's men?" Heather quietly asked.

"I don't know. They let him hang the last time we had him in lock up. Besides, the military put down most of his guys when they attacked their transport yesterday." Jake turned to her quickly, kissing her forehead then rubbing her bare tummy under the sheets, eliciting a light smile from Heather that she did not keep for long.

"Do you think Emily…?"

Jake grabbed his holstered gun off the nightstand, situating it on his body smoothly, before going to the end of the bed for the radio. "I don't know." His honest answer sounded grave. Heather nodded her head. What would any of them do for the ones they loved?

Jake bent at the waist and kissed her lips. "I'll probably be at work the rest of the day so…"

"Will I see you back out at the farm later?"

"How about I keep you posted." The radio Jake procured for his family presently sat in a charger on the upstairs hall table. If they needed one another, they called. "Tell Mom for me." Jake gave her a brief smirk before grabbing his boots from the floor, then opened the bedroom door and was gone.

"Bye." Heather raised her hand and laid it back down, taking in a big sigh. Worried as she may be, sleep had begun to pull her back. She settled into the warm spot Jake had left in the mattress and breathed in, as her hand fell to her middle. Slowly she drifted into uneasy sleep.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Downstairs, Jake sat down at the piano bench to put on his boots and then he heard a click. The small camp light his mother kept in the kitchen had been turned on; the small light illuminating a shadow onto the kitchen wall. He knew his mother and Heather were still upstairs and that Eric had enough sense not to visit this late—early.

Gun now drawn, one boot off, Jake scanned the living room with his peripheral vision while his eyes stayed trained on the kitchen entryway. Quietly he approached the barely lit room at the ready. And then he turned the corner…

"Jake. We need to talk." A gruff voice barked out. Dark brown eyes met steely black.

"Hawkins?"

**Not Quite The End Yet.**

_(Read the authors note.)_

This story is dedicated to my Dad,

May 27, 1954—February 23, 2008

Thank you for the laughter and the love.

I'll see ya across Turtle Creek.


End file.
